Mein Gedächtnis
by pretense
Summary: AU. GrimmUlqui. With an unknown person suddenly appearing in his dreams, long-forgotten memories resurface... Will it be for better or for worse? COMPLETE
1. Ersten Kapitel

Disclaimer: The authoress does not own Bleach nor any of its characters.

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Creases grew on grayish-blue sheets as the figure within them tossed and turned… Cold sweat rolled down the tanned and muscular skin… Fists clenched on the comforters… An expression of discomfort clearly on the handsome and decidedly boyish face, strands of ice-blue hair sticking onto the sweat-covered features…

_He was in a deserted area… A blanket of blinding white enveloped everything around him… Cerulean eyes blinked in confusion as they gazed at himself and saw that even his clothes were drained of color, and as far as he could see the only exceptions to the grayish-white monochrome was his own tanned skin… Where in the hell?_

'_You…'_

_A voice… A foreign voice echoed around him, startling the teen… He whisked around; nothing behind him… He looked left and right… still nothing… What in the-_

'_What are you… doing here…?'_

_The same voice asked, the emotionless but definitely masculine tone reverberating…_

"_Who the fuck is there? Show yourself!" the tanned teen demanded, his fists clenching, ready to strike._

_A strong gust of wind suddenly blew, the white blanket, which he now identified to be sand, whirled around and created some kind of twirling smoke… And then… a figure appeared… At first, it was covered by the swirling dust particles but those eventually cleared out, revealing a pale teen standing in its midst… Black hair, cool green eyes, porcelain white skin, wearing a plain combination of white shirt and pants…_

'_You are…' the other guy's lips moved in pattern with the echoing words. The expression on his rather impassive-looking face showed the slightest bit of disbelief._

_Cerulean eyes widened… He could suddenly hear his heart pounding loudly in his ears… What…? Was it fear? No… There was some sort of twisted familiarity… "Who are you?" he asked, albeit surprised at hearing his own voice echo; his clenched hands gradually relaxing when he realized the guy wasn't exactly any sort of threat to him._

_The pale guy's expression turned to surprise all of a sudden… His cool green eyes widening with a mixture of sadness and shock, his small mouth dropping agape… As quick as it appeared, it had gone… The guy appeared indifferent once again… 'I see', he murmured as though coming to a conclusion…_

"_What?"_

'…_Nothing…'_

_The wind suddenly became forceful, bringing about another bout of a sandstorm… The blinding white sand surrounding the black-haired enigma once again…_

"_Hey! Where are you going?! I'm not done with-" he tried earnestly to see through the swirls of sand but it was to no avail…_

_The clouds of sand then subsided and he found himself alone once again…_

"-you!" Dark pupils dilated and the sound of raspy breathing filled the small room. The muscled figure arose from the bed, sitting up with his hands still clutching the covers way too tightly.

A dream, he realized as he made a quick glance of his surroundings and realized that he was in his dorm room. Crouching low, the teen placed both his elbows on his lap and supported his head with both hands. A shuddering sigh escaped chapped lips; eyelids shut tight, a cold voice reverberating in his ears…

'_You…'_

He could still see those impossibly green eyes staring back at him unblinkingly…

'_What are you… doing here…?'_

Soft ebony black hair swaying in the wind… Deathly pale skin not much of a contrast against the sand all around…

"Damn…" the muscular figure grit out as his hands raked back his hair, the ice-blue locks kept back by the sweat that seemed to coat even his scalp.

The air conditioning unit giving no such help in calming down the teen, seeing as it was turned on and what it gave out was nothing less than chilling. Grunting well-chosen curse words, he gathered the comforters around him, using the blankets in wiping the cold sweat from his face. Blinking blearily at the digital alarm clock up on his wall, he realized that he only had an hour before school begins… As if on cue, three loud knocks resounded from his door, located at the far end of the wall opposite the double-decked bed that he occupied.

"Grimmjaw!" a voice called from the other side of the wooden door. "It's six-thirty already! Get up or we'll be late!"

"I'm awake, goddamit! You don't have to scream, Il Forte!!" the sole teen in the room retorted, knowing full well of his friend's habit of being the local alarm clock in their dorm. Scratching his head and yawning, the one called Grimmjaw got out of his bed and stretched. Seriously, the only time he got up early and it was because of some stupid shitty dream…

Leaving his bed unmade, the teen grabbed a royal blue towel from his closet and marched out of the room.

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"Oh, for the love of-! Szayel, get your prissy ass out of there! You're hogging the showers again!" came the not-so-unexpected complaint from down the hall.

"Hah! Like _you_ have any right to say that! You took twenty minutes yesterday, you insufferable git!" the affronted retort was heard loud and clear even with a solid door closed in on the speaker.

"Shut it you two!" was the order from a tall sleepy-looking teen making his way down the stairs at the _opposite_ end of the corridor, his left hand covering his mouth as he let out a rather large yawn.

A blur of gray and absinthe rushed past the stairs, screaming something along the lines of "What's for breakfast? What's for breakfast?"

"Hn… There's an examination on Trigonometry today, I believe…" rambled another teen; a towel draped on his still-damp hair, oriental eyes read from sheets of paper as he entered a door, pretty much ignoring everyone else.

Grimmjaw couldn't help but roll his eyes at what he dared to name as the daily routine in his dorm… Honestly, what else can he expect from an all-boys dormitory? Closing the door behind him, the towel slung over his left shoulder, the cerulean-eyed figure made his way downstairs to where the dining area-slash-kitchen was located.

The dining room was a moderately sized room (about two of the dorm rooms put together at least), it housed a long rectangular table with about twelve seats, a huge refrigerator, an equally huge storage cabinet, a sink, and a counter on the corners. Despite the scarcity of furniture in the room, there was barely space to move around it at the moment… The room not exactly filled but a hell lot of people were currently occupying the said area, each wanting to have some breakfast before heading to school, so yeah… Grimmjaw decided to just get his morning coffee and stalked off to the adjoining living room to have a bit of peace…

"…_Late last evening-"_ the solemn voice of a guy drifted around the room, which was considerably dark in contrast to the sunrise outside; the curtains drawn together not letting a single ray of sunlight venture into the room… The light from the fluorescent lamp from the adjoining dining room not reaching more than a meter into the room from the doorway.

The ice-blue haired teen encountered the tall teen from before lounging on the couch… asleep… with the TV on.

"_-witnesses claim that the ten-wheeler-"_

Rolling his eyes, Grimmjaw took the seat adjacent to the occupied couch, sipping on his mug of coffee; picking up the remote control from the coffee table, which was placed conveniently in front of the couch. Giving a highly disinterested look at the television screen, it came to him that the channel was set on the local morning news program… Some news anchor appeared to be reporting from some white building… A mental ward? A hospital? He didn't exactly give a shit.

"_-unfortunate accident has befallen the illustrious Schiff-"_

'Tsch, who gives a shit?' the cerulean-eyed teen thought before carelessly changing the channel.

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At six minutes past seven, Grimmjaw was already suited up and all but ready to go to school… This was one good reason to hate Mondays… Ruffling up his hair a bit, the muscular teen grinned at his reflection in the mirror… Badass… just the way he liked it…

Pocketing the necessary items (his room keys, wallet, cellphone, and a ball pen), the muscular teen strode out the doors. His "posse", for the lack of a better term, awaiting him, like always, at the dormitory's front steps. School was just a ten-minute walk from their place, so they weren't in much of a hurry.

It was the middle of November, the chilly air hung around them like a blanket of ice as the six of them took their time in getting to the Academy… The trees were bare and a small settlement of snow had paid homage to most of the trees' empty branches, not to mention the ground itself. At the sight of the immaculately white snow, a certain blue-haired teen couldn't help but be reminded of the earlier events of the day…

The conversation of the other five pushed away at the back of his mind as he recalled the dream that he had… Why was he so bothered anyway? Well, okay, it wasn't every day that little shits come into his dreams and speak to him like crap… Still… Who was that fucking kid who dared show up in his sleep?! Seriously… The guy creeped him out… With the deathly gray/white skin and all… Not to mention that that kid… okay, the guy seemed to be more of a teen his age, or maybe even younger, but he was definitely in his teens… Moving on. How come he just can't shake off the vibe… creepy vibe, if you may… that he kinda sorta knew the guy… Well, the guy certainly seemed to know him, in one way or another…

So who in the flaming damned hell was he?!

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**A/N:** First time to write anything on Bleach… I know this is too effin' short but it's kinda like an intro anyway… So should I continue?


	2. Zweiten Kapitel

_"Hurry up!" a brash little boy shouted, his cheeks and arms quite grubby with sweat and dirt seeing as he'd been running around all day with his… erm… friends. The loose tank top and shorts that he wore were not exempted from being sullied as a light dusting of brown dirt seemed to cover up most of his clothing… Cerulean eyes looked about with a tinge of annoyance as tanned arms were crossed in front of his small chest._

_"W-Wait up, Grimmjaw!" a taller and thinner boy panted as he continued to run towards the first boy's location. They were on a sandy beach, one that was quite near to their village… It was late in the afternoon, and the titian sunlight blinded them all as the wide open sea reflected its rays. The cold blowing wind didn't do any better as it kept on bringing particles of sand into his face and eyes; and despite his naturally orient eyes, Shawlong didn't particularly find it any helpful._

_"Come on, guys! You sissy's can do better than that!" Grimmjaw hollered, his ice-blue hair being ruffled by the sea breeze. He frowned as he saw that aside from Shawlong, none of his other companions were even ten feet close to him… 'Tsch, weaklings…' the young boy thought to himself…_

_And suddenly there was a sound… A soft melody… The air carried it all around him… It was a soft, mellow tune… It wasn't like the sounds of a piano nor was it of a violin that he was used to hearing being played at the town square every weekend or so… It sounded like a flute… or some sort of wind instrument… No matter what, it was entrancing in the least… He turned around, where did that song come from? It was still playing… but damn, the stupid sound seemed to be coming from all directions… Dammit!_

_"G-Grimm…jaw… C-Can we t-take a break…?"_

_The cerulean-eyed boy turned his head slightly to find the Chinese boy spread-eagled on the sand, breathing heavily. Looking back at the others, he saw that they were still far away… Rolling his eyes, the boy replied. "Yeah, sure… Hey, Shawlong, while you rest your ass there, I'm just going to check something out alright?" Grimmjaw declared. "Stay there and wait for the others… If you're all there and I'm not back yet, don't bother looking… I'll go back when I'm finished, got it?"_

_"Y-Yeah… but-?" Shawlong had not even finished his question before Grimmjaw sped off…_

_Tanned legs carried the youth across the beach until he found a cliff that was low enough and appeared to be easy to climb… Maybe if he got to higher ground, he'd see more… With that in mind, the tanned boy began to ascend the rock formation… The rocks were jagged providing sufficient foothold for the boy, and within a few minutes Grimmjaw found himself atop the cliff, which gave him a good view of the whole beach area not to mention the sea… Looking back at Shawlong's position, he saw that Edorad now joined the Chinese. Shaking his head in pity for the weaklings, he focused his attention on the sound…_

_Wait a damn second, the sound stopped!_

_His frown growing wider, Grimmjaw turned around and surveyed the place atop the hill, which appeared to be some garden of sorts, if the hedges and flowers were any clue… Freezing in his tracks as he saw another kid looking straight at him with a startled expression… The ice-blue haired kid blinked… There was kid up here?! Looking closer, Grimmjaw saw that the boy was deathly pale, even under the orange sun, his onyx black hair was around shoulder length and his eyes were green… They weren't green like the grass or trees… they weren't green like those jade or emeralds at the stores either… They were… green… with a cool touch to it… A calming touch… Tilting his head to the right as to take a better angle at the boy, Grimmjaw noticed his clothes… It consisted of a white long-sleeved polo, a black vest and slacks and leather shoes… Too formal in his opinion… Then he saw it… held by two pale hands, a metal flute… The pieces then fell together in the little boy's head…_

_"You were the one playing that sound a while ago…" Grimmjaw exclaimed, sounding a bit accusing._

_"…Yes. What about it?" the other boy replied, his voice low and barely heard above the sounds of the waves._

_Grimmjaw was suddenly at a loss for words… What was it about that sound that made him go all the way up here? Hell, he didn't know… "It sounded stupid so I wanted to know who was the idiot who was playing it…" the tanned boy replied, crossing his arms._

_"I see…" the other replied, his green eyes staring back unblinkingly seemingly unfazed. "Then I apologize if it had caused you any distress…" He then turned to leave._

_"H-Hey, wait!" Grimmjaw shouted, feeling quite stupid for suddenly stopping the guy._

_Said guy looked at him from over his shoulder with a perfect brow raised in question._

_"C-Can you show me how you… made that sound…" he asked, eyes looking sideward… Oh, if that guy dared to smirk at him, he was going to make him pay…_

_"I thought you disliked hearing me play…?" the pale one asked, turning around to face the tanned kid once more._

_"Well… It's not like… I just…" Grimmjow spared the other boy a glance and saw that the other was looking at him a bit expectantly… a glint of wonder reflecting from those green eyes… "Argh, crap! Look, just-"_

_A melody played…_

_Grimmjaw was cut in mid sentence as the other boy unexpectedly heeded his unfinished request…_

_The boy's stature was perfect, he stood tall and proud. His eyes were closed and an air of concentration surrounded him. The gusts of wind making the sound spread all around… as though enveloping the both of them within its ethereal grasps… The pale kid played… perfectly without mistake… Grimmjaw would've thought of him as a professional if he hadn't known the kid's appearance… The onyx-haired boy appeared to be roughly around his age, if not younger…_

_As suddenly as it began, the song ended… It took Grimmjaw quite a while to register this fact and when he did, he saw an amused smile hanging loosely on the other's lips._

_"W-What are you smiling at?!" the ice-blue-haired boy demanded, eyebrows creased and arms crossed over his chest._

_The other simply shook his head, the slightest bit of a smile still present on his lips._

_"Don't laugh at me!"_

_"I am not laughing at you…" the other confirmed._

_"Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!!"_

"And why should I 'shut up', Mr. Jeagerjacques?" the cold voice of the teacher rang about.

Cerulean eyes blinked, the vague print on the textbook slowly becoming clearer. 'Where…?'

"Mr. Jeagerjacques!"

Ice-blue hair rose from behind the thick pages of the history book, eyebrows creased showing none but displeasure. "What is it, woman?" the irritation was clear on the teen's voice, discreetly wiping off a trickle of saliva from the edge of his mouth.

"Well this **woman** is the teacher here, Mr. Jeagerjacques!" the tall, bespectacled teacher replied in equal distaste.

"So what's your point?" Grimmjaw asked dully, his patience wearing thin, closing the good-for-nothing textbook.

"I'll bet you were not listening to our discussion," the middle-aged woman noted, grayish orbs latching menacingly at her teenage student.

"Yeah, yeah… so?" the muscular teen asked offhandedly, not even bothering to hide the yawn that escaped his lips, frowning as he looked up disinterestedly at his History teacher… this was so not his day…

"Detention, Mr. Jeagerjacques!" the fuming woman spat out, marching to her desk and filling up a gray slip, tearing it from the stack and handing it to the ice blue-haired teen.

Rolling his eyes, the tanned teen stood up, took the piece of paper and pocketed it, reaching his seat just as the school bell rang.

"Assignment for tomorrow: read and answer pages 206-217." The gray-haired teacher announced as (some) of the class took it down in their notebooks.

Grimmjaw was the first to leave the classroom, and he was immediately followed by three other teens. It was already lunch break, they had one hour to buy and eat their lunch either at the school cafeteria or at any of the nearby restaurants. Out of habit, the muscular teen headed to their usual hangout, a restaurant just across the street. Recognizing a Chinese boy and a blonde seated at a corner table, he headed their way.

"Il Forte, Shawlong." Grimmjaw greeted in recognition as the aforementioned teens moved to make space for the newcomers.

"You don't look so well…" the blonde one, Il Forte, commented, eyeing the muscular teen.

"He got detention in Aburro's class." Edorad explained, flinching when he received a glare from their leader.

"Like you had to say it, jackass…" Grimmjaw ground out, glaring at the teen.

"What for?" Shawlong queried, questioning the other two.

However, D-Roy and Nakim only looked at each other and then at their 'boss' before shaking their heads in reply. Rule number one: If Grimmjaw says no, it means (and stays) fucking NO.

The oriental teen just sighed as a waiter approached them and got their orders.

Whilst waiting for the guy to return with their orders, the muscular teen couldn't help but muse about the dream that he had during History class… Sure, he never really did listen to anything that Mrs. Aburro thought them and he'd fallen asleep in her class for once or twice a week, but earlier… It was just fucking weird… It all began that morning… when the same, or rather, older version of the kid appeared to him… Stupid prick, he inwardly cursed… The stupid bastard seemed to have a fascination of plaguing him every time he slept now…

Dammit… That guy… He felt like he knew him from somewhere… But he couldn't quite remember who the guy was… Rather, he couldn't for the life of him remember when he ever saw the guy… He was positive that he knew the guy at some point but… when? Was it from his childhood? It certainly seemed so, if he was to believe that all-too realistic dream that he had during class… But why did the guy suddenly disappear from his memories… Since, Shawlong and the others were obviously in it, along with that pale kid… And well, Shawlong and the others are still with him now, so what happened to the kid? And what was the guy doing, suddenly appearing in his dreams all of a sudden? God dammit… His fists clenched subconsciously.

"Grimmjaw?" Il Forte's voice sounded distant… "Grimmjaw?"

"Huh?" the guy in question looked up, an uncharacteristic look of distraction on his face.

"You've been spacing out… again…" Nakim pointed out, choosing his words carefully.

"Tsch." Grimmjaw huffed and sneered, "I wasn't 'spacing out' you idiot!" he declared defensively.

"Oh yes you were." Il Forte stated, "We've been trying to get you to snap out of it for a full minute since our lunch arrived… You were honestly unresponsive…"

Blinking, the muscular teen realized that indeed, the lunch he ordered (which he was unaware of seeing before) was now placed precisely in front of him. "Whatever…" he muttered, the frown on his lips more than enough of a warning declaring that any further inquiries about this will earn them a good beating.

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**A/N:** this was actually the first chapter that I wrote for this story, then I decided that a sort of prologue should be made so this became second… Was it any better? And just a warning, I suppose the rest of the fic will be filled with flashbacks.. Will that be alright? Coz I myself am already getting dizzy reading all the stupid italics...

Oh and for evil-neji who asked, _Mein Gedächtnis_ is from German meaning "My Memory". Sorry, I forgot to put that up on the first chap. :D


	3. Dritte Kapitel

"So I was _saying_ to that Sun-Sun biatch that she had no right to act like some retarded drama queen just because the teacher preferred _my_ suggestion over her shitty one and-"

Grimmjaw inwardly groaned, this was one damned reason he didn't like crashing at Il Forte's room after school… Said damned reason was none other than the blonde's little fruitcake of a brother, Szayel Aporro… one hell of a chatterbox, that guy was.

"…And that was enough reason for you to slap her? Honestly Szayel…" Il Forte's disinterested tone was crystal clear, but his younger brother continued to rant.

"But she was asking for it!" Szayel screeched, hugging a rather huge round plush toy as he lay on the upper bunk, his head hanging off the edges of the bed. Golden eyes sneaked their way onto the resident visitor of his and his brother's room who currently occupied the lower bunk of the double-decked bed in the room, pouting slightly when he saw that the muscular teen's eyes fixated at some notebook.

Purposively ignoring the stares he could feel boring into the back of his head, Grimmjaw continued to scribble notes, he was already used to it so _hah_. The pink-haired freak of nature, as Grimmjaw put it, was a year lower than himself and Il Forte… and he was pretty sure that the guy was a closet queen… Really, he had just about enough of the sneaking looks that he received from the guy… the freak. Nonetheless, he endured him, since Szayel _did_ help him through all the shit called 'homework'… He may not acknowledge it publicly, but he was damn grateful that Il Forte had one freaking genius of a lil' bro, who (despite having the hots for him) was thoroughly willing to share his _profound knowledge_.

"So, how was detention…?" Il Forte asked idly, leaning back onto his pillows having just finished reading the assigned text for their History class the next day.

Grimmjaw, who was sitting at the other end of the blonde's bed, shot him a withering look. "Ya know what usually goes on there, no need to ask 'bout it…" he replied dismissively, his face scrunching up as he found a part of the text rather confusing. "Oi, Szayel!" he called, knowing full well that the guy was all but waiting to hear him.

"Yes?" came the somewhat sing-song voice of the younger Granz, his pale hands gripping tightly on the edges of the upper bunk as he peered down at his brother and his friend below; pink hair overturned and golden eyes blinking beneath his rectangular glasses.

"Can ya explain this shit?" Grimmjaw asked, lifting the Physics book towards the bespectacled teen, one finger pointing to the confusing phrase.

Taking the book from the calloused hands, Szayel turned the book upside-down and read the lines, explaining shortly after what it was all about.

"You got detention again, Grimmjaw?" the pink-haired genius decided to ask, as he returned the book to its owner.

"None of yer business." The teen in question replied, roughly taking back the textbook and finishing the last question of the assignment, closing his book and notebook loudly when he finished. Seeing the pouting face of Szayel, the ice-blue haired teen resisted the urge to throw the book right at 'im. "…But since you helped me with this physics shit, yeah, I got detention… from that old hag Aburro, no less…"

"Well, she's always been a witch… How long did she charge you this time?"

"Psh, a whole fucking week… Pain in the ass really…" Grimmjaw answered, gathering his belongings, which consisted of nothing but books and notebooks.

"A whole week's detention just for sleeping in class? How crude…" Il Forte commented offhandedly, blue eyes darting between his brother from the upper bunk and Grimmjaw opposite him. "And Szayel don't dangle like that from your bed, all the blood's going to settle in your brain if you don't cease that immediately," the tanned Granz added, referring to his pink-haired brother.

Szayel Aporro rolled his eyes but nonetheless laid back properly on his bed, the round plush he had named 'Verona' squashed against his chest. Casually looking at the alarm clock that read '7:49';seeing the time, the lithe teen let go of the plush toy and set it on a corner of his bed. Going down the short ladder of the double-deck, the pink-haired teen declared that he just remembered that Tesla had borrowed his scientific calculator and has yet to return it. Which probably meant: 'I think I'm gonna barge into Tesla and Nnoitra's room and have another petty argument with the resident drag queen. See ya guys at dinner.'

"'Bout damn time…" the cerulean-eyed teen in the room said when the door closed at Szayel's exit.

"You know, I simply can't understand why you seem to have such… dislike for my younger brother…" Il Forte stated, dark irises focused on his friend.

"Well, the little creep's a queer and you know it…" Grimmjaw replied, a toothy grin in place.

Il Forte sighed, _this again_… "Grimmjaw, I am well-aware of my brother's effeminacy… but it does not really mean that he's… like that…"

The muscular teen, however, just snorted, "Whatever you say, man. Whatever you say…"

"Hey, Il Forte…" the blue-haired teen speaks all of a sudden, breaking the silence that had dawned on the room once the blonde had decided not to reply to his previous statement.

"What?"

Grimmjaw paused, was he _really_ going to ask the stupid question? Sitting with his legs crossed, the teen rested both elbows on his lap, eyes half-lidded and looking rather pointedly at the light-blue walls opposite him, a small frown on his lips giving him the look of one who is deep in thought. "You remember that time that I woke up at the hospital, yeah?"

"Of course, Grimmjaw…" the blonde replied, "but that was more or less a decade ago…"

"Yeah, well, remember that I told ya guys that time that I forgot who ya were, askin' ya how I got there, and all that shit?"

"Naturally… It took us about a month to get you back into your old self…" Il Forte nodded as he spoke, his eyes closed as though he was reminiscing. "We had to start our friendship all over again…"

"Damn right…" Grimmjaw agreed, remembering exactly what his blue-eyed friend was talking about. After a pregnant pause, he spoke again, "…I never really got a straight idea of how I was _before_ that hospital incident, ya know? But…"

'But…?' Il Forte opened his eyes and raised a fine golden brow at the other occupant of his bed.

"D'you remember a time when us guys were… I dunno, runnin' along some beach or shit like that…?" Grimmjaw mumbled although his voice was quite loud enough for the other to completely grasp his words.

"Beach…?" The blonde tilted his head; the thought rang a mental bell in his head…

"Yeah… It was like some fucking race or somethin'…" Grimmjaw turned to face his companion. "D'you remember any shit like that?"

Il Forte blinked, racking his brains until realization came upon him… He remembered that… They were still little kids back then, it was a summer day, they were bored and decided to just run around the village… They reached the beach and they had a race… Naturally, Grimmjaw was the first amongst them… He himself had been running just behind Edorad at that time, Nakim and D-Roy catching up behind him… But when he reached where Shawlong and Edorad had stopped, he couldn't find their 'leader'… Shawlong explained that their blue-haired leader had gone off somewhere, and that if they were completed before he came back, they should go back home already… He could remember his confusion back then… Back then… _Back then…_ The blonde's eyes widened considerably, his mouth gaping as he realized an important thing… "…That happened before the accident," the teen muttered to himself.

"What?" Grimmjaw asked, noticing the blonde's movements.

"That happened before you got into that accident, Grimmjaw!" Il Forte exclaimed.

"The what-huh?" the other asked, ice-blue eyebrows stitching together.

"You know, when you got hit and run by a car, which led to you being carried off to the hospital…" was his companion's explanation.

"Really?" came the muscled teen's rather surprised reaction, one hand scratching the back of his head offhandedly. "Well that'd explain some shit…"

"Grimmjaw… when… when did you remember this…?" Il Forte's eyes were glued to his friend.

The one in question merely gave a shrug, "…Just today… when I fell asleep at the old hag's History class…"

'Why only now…?' the blue-eyed blonde wanted to ask but his companion beat him to it…

"Speakin' of which, d'you remember some black-haired midget… He's kinda deathly pale and green-eyed and shit… Didn't he use to hang out with us?"

The other teen's face showed confusion, frowning as he found that he couldn't recall anyone that fitted the blue-haired teen's description. "Grimmjaw… I don't think there _had been_ anyone like that with us…"

It was Grimmjaw's turn to sport a puzzled look, "Ya serious?"

"Positive. Why?"

The frown on the ice-blue-haired teen's lips grew wider. "…There was a guy like that in my dreams…"

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Most of the residents of the dorm were already gathered at the dining table for dinner when the clock struck eight. A streaming pot of rice and about three different types of viands were placed at the middle of the rectangular table, a bottle of cola and a jug of juice were also laid on top.

At the head of the table was a tall sleepy-looking teen with a goatee, he was already half-finished with his meal; it was sort of a mutual agreement amongst all residents of the dorm that the guy would have the head seat, the others changed seating arrangements every now and then…

On the third seat from the head, on both sides of the table, coal-black eyes leered as contrasting golden ones stared evenly. In the blink of an eye, silverwares clashed, two forks pinning down the only slice of meat left on the platter in between them. Eyes narrowed and frowns deepened, low growls barely escaping two pairs of lips.

"Let go, Nnoitra, _sweety_… I got it first…" came the malice-laced tone of the resident genius.

"Oh, I'm sorry, _dear_, but I was a split-second faster than you… So shoo!" was the equally malevolent come back.

"You wouldn't want to _accidentally_ get locked in the school broom closet _again _would you?"

"Only if you'd mind to _lose_ that stupid plush toy of yours _by pure chance_…"

"Drag queen…"

"Closet freak…"

"Pedophile!"

"Fruitcake!"

"And _I'll_ take that!" interjected a new voice a seat apart from the golden-eyed teen, catching the first two off guard and thus managing to swipe off the reason of the argument, quickly plopping the piece of meat into his mouth. Licking his lips with a smug grin as he looked at the incredulous faces of the other two…

"Grimmjaw you son of a bitch!" the raven-haired teen exploded, while his previous opponent just rolled his eyes and pouted.

"Hey, 's not my fault yer too preoccupied with yer bitching…" Grimmjaw retorted, grinning from ear to ear.

"Nnoitra… you can have mine…" a dirty-blonde haired teen to the right of Nnoitra stated, his low but serious.

"Aw, ain't that just sweet?," the muscular teen sneered, thoroughly ignoring the glare he received from two other occupants of the table.

"Shut it asshole!" Nnoitra hissed, completely ignoring the teen on his right.

"Look who's talking! Some-"

"Enough of that you two…" came the bored voice of the lean teen at the head of the table.

Both Grimmjaw and Nnoitra instantly held back, as all eyes turned towards the speaker. The teen at the head of the table stood up and placed his plate onto the sink.

"You two do the dishes tonight," was the next statement that came from the teen as he passed the table and made his way to the living room.

"But Stark-!" the protest that came from the two teens were cut short as the one called Stark raised a brow at them.

"Er… I was just gonna say, okay… You know, it's cool… Drag- I mean, Nnoitra and I can do that… Eheh…" was the immediate cover up from the cerulean-eyed teen, a forced smile on his face which was only let down when Stark had fully exited the dining room.

Szayel on the other hand, who had been content to just watch the exchange, plastered a wide grin on his face, "Well… it was supposedly my turn to do the dishes tonight but…" his grin turned into a leer as he faced the fuming Nnoitra. "…I guess I'd say thanks for _volunteering_ to do the job for me… How sweet of you, Nnoitra…"

"Bullshit." Nnoitra spat with much distaste.

The other occupants of the table merely hid their laughs, everyone knew too well that the raven-haired teen had an utter hate for doing the dishes… and basically, any other type of clean-up duty…

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**A/N:** And here's Szayel!! My current favorite amongst all Bleach characters … yeah, this lil' author here is a sucker for mad scientists… No, I do not ship Nnoitra and Szayel… I just think it's fun to have them banter around… :D And no, I have no direct hatred with cars or any vehicle-related accidents.

And I want to give a great big thank you for everyone who've been reading this fic of mine! Thanks for reading this chapter and please leave a review to let me know what you think!

Cheers!


	4. Vierte Kapitel

Later that night, Grimmjaw wearily let himself down on his bed… Washing the dishes was a damn shitty chore… Washing the dishes with a nagging Nnoitra simply equated to 'fucked up'. Seriously, the guy could give Szayel a run for his money as the resident Priss Queen… His back ached from standing when he washed the stupid dishes; who knew so much hurt could come from doing such a petty chore?

The front of his t-shirt was now wet from the tap water and soapsuds, soaking it to the extent that the cloth was clinging to his chest. Growling, the teen took off the gray shirt and threw it away from the bed, not really caring where it went. Being too tired to move, and lacking the interest to do anything else really, the teen grabbed his blankets and wrapped the material around him, already half on his way to sleep.

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_He crossed his arms, sitting at the edge of the cliff, his little feet dangling down, the wind caressing his small figure. Deciding that he'd had enough, the tanned boy stood up and turned around, sneaking behind a lush green bush, cerulean eyes peering curiously at the other side._

_The area appeared to be deserted, not a soul was in sight… A huge frown appeared on his lips, realizing that he'd just wasted his time. 'Darn it…' the kid thought. 'And I even ditched Il Forte and the others to go here… What a waste…' Just as he was about to climb back down the cliff, the sound of a creaking door reached his ears. Keeping still, he saw the little boy with the flute from yesterday and he was getting ready to make his presence known when two other people came out of the same door. The boy was held back, sinking lower as to not draw anyone's attention._

_Together with the pale kid were a man and a woman, probably his parents, the watcher concluded. The three took the seats around a small table in the middle of the garden._

_"How's your practice coming along?" the man addressed his child, his voice smooth and calm, somewhat matching his appearance. Cinnamon brown hair and chocolate eyes giving none but the aura of kindness, but the onlooker couldn't help but think that something was off with the guy._

_"It's going along fine, Father…" the green-eyed child replied, his voice emotionless just as he'd heard yesterday._

_"That's good to hear…"_

_"Dear," the woman suddenly spoke up, addressing the man at her left. At first glance, the age difference between her and her husband was more than obvious. He looked to be in his mid-thirties whilst she appeared to be along 24-26 years old. She had long, wavy blonde hair that reached her back, and the soft smile that was on her lips didn't quite reach her raven-black eyes. "Summer is nearing, and I was wondering if you'd like for our family to go abroad for vacation…" she asked in a sweet tone._

_Even though the other kid's back was facing him, the onlooker saw the boy sink into his chair as though experiencing some sort of unease._

_"Hm, what was that…?" came the father's voice; the guy was looking at the pale boy with an air of inquiry._

_"…I was saying that I didn't want to leave for the summer…"_

_"W-Why's that so?" the woman asked this time, her smile faltering as she turned her gaze on the smallest figure amongst them._

_"I still have a lot of lessons to learn here and the recital will be in the middle of May, I'm afraid I won't be able to leave," came the curt reply._

_The woman looked at the man with a sort of pleading look in her eyes._

_"My child, our vacation will only be for a short time if you want…" the father spoke, "We can manage to be back in time for your recital… Don't you want to spend more time with your new mother?"_

_At that the black-haired boy's back straightened, he lifted his face and replied in a decisive manner. "I'm sorry Father, but I would never be able to acknowledge that woman as my mother."_

_Hearing this, the blonde woman stood up and left the pair, leaving soft sobs echoing in her wake._

_The cinnamon brown-haired man lifted his right hand and rubbed his temples, willing the stress away. "We'll talk about this later, alright?" the man stated as he stood up and moved to follow the blonde._

_The green-eyed boy was left alone but he made no notion of moving, he remained in his seat as his Father went inside and closed the door. The boy sat still, waiting for god-knows-what._

_Deeming the time to be right, the tanned kid moved out of the bushes, the noise he made causing the other boy to look his way._

_"You again…"the pale one said, turning around his seat as his gaze fell on the blue-haired kid making his way towards him._

_"…That's some deep shit ya got yourself into…" he commented, a smirk on his lips as he stood beside the occupied chair; looking very much out-of-place in the luxurious garden with his tatty clothes and dirt-covered face and hands._

_"Excuse me?" the other asked, not quite used to hearing such unrefined words._

_"Sayin' that you can't acknowledge that blondie as your mother… Your father's mighty pissed off you know?" blue eyes latched onto green ones._

_Dark brows creased as their owner came into a realization, "You were spying on me?" he asked, albeit incredulous._

_"Spying? Hell no!" interjected the tanned boy, crossing his arms in a show of defiance._

_"Then what were you doing all the way up here?" came the green-eyed boys inquiry._

_"I-" cerulean blue eyes blinked. Why did he go here anyway? Not quite finding a sufficient answer, the boy shrugged, "I dunno, I just felt like it. Is that so bad?"_

_"Technically, since this is private property, I suppose so."_

_"No shit?"_

_"You've really got to stop using such vulgar words-" the pale boy stopped, blinking before his wide green orbs stared intensely at the other kid. "Say, I've been encountering you for two days now and I still don't know your name…"_

_"So? Why d'you want to know it anyway?"_

_He could see that the other was straining to roll his eyes but kept it at bay. The blue-haired kid simply allowed the grin on his lips to grow as the other shot him a 'you-are-so-hopeless' look._

_"I wouldn't want to keep talking to a stranger now, would I?"_

_"Uh, hello? You currently **are** talking to me, and you don't even know my name, I don't see a problem here…" he replied with a toothy grin, his hands clasped behind his head._

_"Just tell me your name…" the dark-haired boy said with a weary tone._

_"Fine, fine… Don't piss in your panties… I'll tell you my name…"_

_"Alright," his companion conceded, "but for the record, I'm a guy."_

_"Okay-Wait-You're a what?!" cerulean blue irises grew as they stared unabashedly at the kid before them._

_"Ah, so you **did** think of me as a girl… Interesting…" a small smile graced pale lips as cool green eyes locked upon the tanned boy._

_"Shit! You're a guy?!"_

_"I believe I just said that."_

_The blue-haired kid stood back, tilting his head left and right, trying to get a better view of the other._

_A single dark eyebrow rose in question._

_"Wow… so you **are** a guy! Even though you look like a girl…" he exclaimed._

_"Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?"_

_"Heh… Anyway, I'm Grimmjaw… Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques!"_

_"Grimm… jaw… Grimmjaw…" the black-haired boy spoke, trying out the name. 'It sounds… nice', he thought. It definitely suited the brash boy before him…_

_"So what's your name?" little Grimmjaw asked, moving closer to the chair that the other kid occupied, laying both his hands on the armrest._

_"I'm Ulquiorra… Ulquiorra Schiffer."_

_"That's a weird name…" Grimmjaw commented, his face scrunching up. "Can I just call ya Ulqui?"_

_Cool green eyes stared at him, eyes so wide that he could almost lose himself in them. Ulquiorra stared at him as though he'd suddenly gone see-through. Cerulean blue orbs stared back at him expectantly, a boyish grin on the tanned lips._

_"So can I?" the ice-blue haired kid repeated, standing on tiptoes as to meet with the face of the boy sitting on the chair._

_Ulquiorra blinked, the tips of his and Grimmjaw's nose were almost touching. Yeah, they were that close. The pale kid swallowed, "Erm… Alright, Grimmjaw…"_

_"Great!" and without any warning, a tanned hand reached out and ruffled Ulquiorra's dark ebony hair._

_"H-Hey!" came the kid's protest as he shifted backwards as to get out of the other's reach._

_"You squeaked! Ha!" Grimmjaw snickered, retracting his hand._

_"You suddenly attacked me!"_

_"I did not!"_

_"Yes you did."_

_"Did not!"_

_"Did too."_

_Instead of retorting, Grimmjaw simply stuck out his tongue and crossed his arm._

_Ulquiorra's prepared retort died down in his throat when he saw the other's childish display… A snicker came forth from his lips… it turned into a small giggle that just grew and grew until he was all-out laughing._

_Cerulean eyes locked onto the laughing child, the pale kid was hugging his stomach, eyelids closed as he laughed. Smirking, Grimmjow allowed himself to laugh as well… He didn't know his reasons, but he just did… This Ulquiorra's laugh was contagious, it seems._

Grimmjaw blinked, where in the hell was he? He looked down and-WHOA! He was fucking standing in mid-air!! No floor beneath his feet! There was only the image of a beach, the ocean's waves caressing the sand, a titian hue covering the whole scenery giving off the effect that it was sunset… Then he heard laughing… Shifting his gaze upwards, he came upon a low cliff with a house on top, there was an open garden nearest the edge of the cliff and there… A shockingly familiar blob of blue hair stood out from the green and white hues of the garden, a black moving spot just beside it. Not really having any idea how, the teenage Grimmjaw willed himself nearer to the blob of blue and not a second later found himself within the garden premises.

His cerulean eyes widened as he recognized the blue-haired kid as none other than himself… A miniature version of him, more precisely… This was just fucking weird… But honestly, it couldn't have been anyone else… How many other people out there actually _had_ blue hair?!

_"You have a weird laugh, Ulqui!" the mini-Grimmjaw (as he'd called the image) stated, his eyes locked onto another._

'Ulqui?' Grimmjaw thought, 'Who the fuck is that?' Deciding to see where his miniature copy was looking at, the muscular teen walked around for a better view and found himself staring at what appeared to be a child-version of the guy who'd been appearing in his dreams recently… He couldn't be mistaken; pale skin, wide green eyes and long-ish ebony hair, it can't be anyone else. So is this the 'Ulqui' guy his mini-self was talking about?

_"It's because you look hilarious, Grimmjaw…" came a reply from Ulqui, the smallest hint of a smile on him._

_"I do NOT do 'hilarious'!" the small Grimmjaw snapped, looking offended._

_"Of course you don't."_

_"Damn right I don't."_

Grimmjaw just watched the scene unfold, amusement playing on him… Even back then he was already a badass… 'This is a dream, or some sort of flashback', he decided, having just learned from Il Forte earlier that his other dream was actually an event in their past. So he _did_ know this Ulqui-guy from before… That'd explain why a teenaged version of him suddenly appeared in his dreams… Well, that didn't exactly explain _why_ the guy was in his dreams but at least he was making some sort of progress… So he had this Ulqui-guy as a friend when he was little, makes sense… But then why did Il Forte say that he didn't know anyone who fit his description? Surely a guy like that Ulqui would stand out, how could Il Forte _not_ know him?

_"Ulquiorra." A foreign voice entered the conversation, accompanied by the sound of an opening door a few feet away._

Grimmjaw saw both kids' eyes widen in fear; subconsciously noting that he seemed to be invisible to the people here.

_"Shit!" Grimmjaw hissed when he saw the door open, the tall figure of Ulquiorra's father moving towards the outside._

_"Ssshh! Go now, don't let him see you," the Ulquiorra ('Ulqui') kid warned, pushing the other away._

_"I'll come again tomorrow, 'kay?" blue eyes sought out green ones as the blue-haired kid vowed._

_"I'll be waiting then," was the response from the dark-haired boy before his friend sped off, rushing into the bushes._

Grimmjaw followed himself (boy, that sounded stupid.) and watched as the small figure expertly climbed down the cliff's side.

_"Were you talking to someone just now, Ulquiorra?"_

The wind carried to cool voice all around but as Grimmjaw turned around to see who was speaking, everything turned black. "What the heck?" words escaped the teen before he could stop them, granted that he was even going to try.

"Grimmjaw…" a distant calling of his name.

"Huh?" blue eyes widened, straining to see something in the abundant darkness…

"Grimmjaw!" a more persistent and louder voice this time. "Grimmjaw! Wake up, you lazy ass!"

Cerulean eyes slowly blinked into focus. "Hu'zzat?" the teen inquired groggily, blinking up to find a pair of lilac eyes staring into him.

"I SAID WAKE THE FUCK UP GRIMMY! IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?!" the lilac eyes went slim as brows creased, the voice growing into a shrill shout, its high-pitched tone serving to maximize the volume even more.

"-the fuck!" Grimmjaw cursed hoarsely as the shout jolted him awake. Now fully aware of the face in front of him that was much too close for comfort, the ice-blue haired teen skidded backwards into his bed, his head colliding with one pole at the corner starting a string of well-practiced curse words.

"Ahaha! Now _that_ is a sure way to start my day…" came an effeminate voice from the darkness, spurts of laughter accompanying the statement.

"Ow! The hell, man… What the fucking hell!" Grimmjaw cussed as he sat up and nursed his throbbing head. Damn, he could even feel small bumps on his scalp now…

"G'mornin' Grimmy, don't 'cha wanna greet your favorite cuz?"

Looking ahead, cerulean eyes narrowed as the person standing just before his bed (and most likely the one who woke him up) registered in his mind as the bane of his existence.

"Fuck you!"

"Aw, now that isn't a proper way to greet your new roommate, now is it?" Lilac eyes slanted mischievously, as the figure made himself comfortable on the edge of Grimmjaw's bed.

Oh damn right, _today_ _was the day_, Grimmjaw recalled.

"…Fuck."

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**A/N:** anyone can guess who that is, right? And of Ulqui's dad? Not much of a guessing game who the man is...

Thanks for everyone who've reviewed the last chap, and of course to all who're reading this fic.. I need to know if I'm doing okay with this, you know? so pretty please leave me a review...

Cheers!


	5. Fünften Kapitel

"Asshole!"

"Retard!"

"Dumbfuck!"

"Shithead!"

"Bitch!"

'Oh my…' A dirty-blond haired teen was pushed lower on the floor, his mousy brown eyes shutting tight as his cheek met with the cold flooring.

'What the-' Above the first guy, a tanned hand clasped over a wide mouth as to stop any oncoming words, onyx orbs narrowed in irritation but nonetheless kept watch on the scene.

'…' Another tanned hand slapped a creased forehead, long blonde hair falling over the teen's eyes.

'Ooh la la…' Meanwhile, a pair of golden eyes feasted on the sight that beheld them from the slightly ajar doorway.

"And that'll teach you to mess with me, you little creep!" came a triumphant statement from a certain muscular teen. The ice-blue haired guy was shirtless as he sat on the back of a smaller teen who laid on his stomach on the wooden floor. He held both hands of the teen below him at the back, his own tanned hand securing them in place.

"You just got lucky I tripped on your stupid blanket!" was the retort emitted by a frail-looking figure, a disgusted look on his face as he glared up. "And just get off me! Damn heavy jackass…" The teen began to squirm, trying to shake off the other on his back but it was to no avail; in the end, the guy's actions only made his dark fringe of hair fall over his lilac eyes. He wore a pale orange long-sleeved t-shirt, short black shorts, and black and white sneakers, all of which were now sullied with the dirt on the floor.

"Err… Grimmjaw?" an uneasy voice called politely.

"What?" the aforementioned teen snapped, cerulean eyes latching onto his doorway where four other teens were situated.

"You aren't trying to break off his arms, are you?" Szayel took courage and approached the two teens in the middle of the room, a pink eyebrow arched in question. The others (Il Forte, Nnoitra, and Tesla) followed in after him, surveying the scene with a highly interested air about them; each one of the four still in their sleepwear.

"… Good idea!" Grimmjaw grinned and began to pull on the other teen's hands.

"Grimmjaw you bastard! LET GO OF ME!!" the perpetrated teen screamed in an effeminate voice, still giving effort in wrestling his hands from Grimmjaw's grip. "ARGH! DAMN MANIAC!"

"HA! Serves you right!" with a final tug, Grimmjaw let go of the lilac-eyed teen's well-abused arms. Standing up, he sneered as the smaller teen groaned and moved to sit up, small pale hands massaging his hurting wrists.

The black-haired teen shot Grimmjaw a decidedly loathing look as he stretched his arms, hearing small cracks when he extended them. "Tsch…" he spat, "It's my first day here and you're already breaking my bones…"

"You deserved that fuckwit." The blue-haired teen countered, crossing his arms.

"Grimmjaw… Who… is she?" Il Forte asked cautiously as a pair of lilac eyes looked at each of them in turn.

A pregnant silence settled over the room, and somewhere in the middle of the small group the sound of someone gagging was heard. Grimmjaw's grin was cracking, as the others looked confused, the newbie, however, looked murderous.

"_What_ did you say, _blondie_?" the newcomer's glare was turned towards the unsuspecting Il Forte. Despite having a low stature, the teen gave off such an aura of danger that Il Forte (who was more than a head taller) instantly backed off and raised his hands palms up in surrender.

The blonde teen chose his words carefully as the smaller _male_ advanced towards him. "Oh-Uhm, s-sorry, I-"

"He called you a chick! Holy shit! Ahahahaha!" Grimmjaw roared with laughter.

"So this new kid here's a guy?" Nnoitra asked nobody in particular. Tesla, who was standing beside him (like always), merely gave a nod; he was still nursing his sore cheek.

"Well this _is _an _all-boys _dormitory, so it's only fitting," Szayel replied, adjusting his glasses and, for once, not picking a fight with the extremely tall teen.

"Shut your trap!" The orange-clad teen rounded on the other people in the room.

"So, who _is_ he?" Szayel prodded, eyeing the small teen with mild curiosity, his question directed at the room's owner.

His chuckles dying down, the cerulean-eyed teen made the introductions. "Guys, this is Luppi. He has a shitty name, I know, but anyway… Luppi-shit, meet the guys at this dorm…"

"Il Forte." The blonde who'd mistaken him as a girl before gave a weary wave.

"Szayel Aporro, Il Forte's little bro and room mate." The pink-haired teen pushed his glasses up his nose, the glasses glinting in the fluorescent lighting.

"Nnoitra." The ridiculously tall teen gave him a sneering sort-of smile.

"And Tesla, Nnoitra's room mate." The mocha-eyed teen nodded in acknowledgement.

"Yo." Luppi grinned facing his new 'acquaintances', "Name's Luppi and I'm pussyface here's cousin…" he stated, pointedly looking at Grimmjaw who scowled. "Anyway, I'll be staying here for the rest of the semester so I hope we'll all get along fine… Isn't that right, _blondie-boy_?" Luppi's gaze settled on Il Forte who gulped and nodded meekly.

Szayel looked on appreciatively as his usually resigned older brother appeared edgy at the presence of this Luppi… "Charmed to meet you, Luppi," he greeted, moving forward and shaking the smaller teen's hand. "I take it you've just arrived here, shall I give you a short tour?"

A fine black eye brow rose as Szayel held on to his hand. Luppi stared back at Szayel's golden eyes and the wide grin on the other teen's face, he could almost see the evil lurking behind those eyes… This should be fun. "Eh, why not?" he agreed, joining elbows with the resident genius and walking out the door with him.

As though woken from a trance, Il Forte hurried to the door and shouted after his brother, "Szayel, you'd better hurry that or we're all gonna be late."

Nnoitra shook his head at Il Forte's 'mother-hen' tendencies. "Another prick up your ass?" he causally asked Grimmjaw as the shirtless teen gave him a deadpanned look.

"You _think_?" the ice-blue haired teen said, one hand motioning towards the numerous bags of luggage that sat against his bunk bed, all of which brought there by none other but his freaking cousin.

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"Welcome to detention, Mr. Jeagerjacques." The sullen voice of the old teacher at the front of the almost-empty classroom greeted the muscular teen as he made his way to an empty seat at the back of the room.

Grimmjaw had his hands in the pockets of his black school pants, leaning back against the wooden chair with his feet on top of the table. Cerulean eyes surveyed the room, not really surprised to find that he had two more companions this time, making it a total of seven people in the detention room, their proctor included.

"Again, these are the rules." The wizened black man said gruffly, tufts of his gray-white hair messily settled on top of his head. "This detention 'ere will run from 4:30 pm until 6:00 pm." Beady eyes shifted from each occupant of the room. "You youngsters are not allowed to make any sound; much less talk with anyone else, got it? And not one of you scallywags is to leave this room until the time set is finished; NO bathroom breaks…"

"…_And I just hope you brats learn yer discipline in this time. Mark my words, when my pledge for Corporal Punishment fer yer detentions are approved… Ohh, just you wait…_" Grimmjaw muttered under his breath, speaking word-for-word the last part of the old man's dialogue. Really, didn't this guy have anything better to do? Like maybe find a goddamned hobby! The guy was practically shedding his dead skin cells all-over the place… Yeah, Barragan Luisenbarn, the old geezer, still finds threaten-teaching as the best outlet for all his years of pent-up tension and whatnot… Seriously, the guy looks old enough to have been part of the Industrial Revolution or something…

Luisenbarn moved to sit behind the teacher's desk at the front, picked up a newspaper and began to read. This is where the boredom kicks in…

At the front of the room two black dudes sat on each corner, shooting death glares at each other every now and then. On the second row was a red-haired teen that Grimmjaw recalled to be in his Language class, behind the redhead was the Orange. No, 'Orange' wasn't the guy's name but that was what Grimmjaw called him; basically since the teen had this stupidly bright orange hair that Grimmjaw just _knew_ he had to beat the crap out of the guy… Looking to his left, a pale blue brow raised as he spotted a rather petite-sized girl with braids on her back… What was a pipsqueak like that doing in here? The girl suddenly turned his way and, upon seeing him looking at her, glared and showed him a fist, as if saying 'What are you looking at, jerk?'.

'Must be her time of the month again…' Grimmjaw mused as he just ran out of things to pass time by. Looking up, the gray-hued ceilings seemed to mock him… Great… just absolutely fucking great… Well, he could always throw spitballs at other people but at the moment, he didn't exactly have the needed materials… So boohoo for that plan.

The sound of crumpling papers filled the room as Luisenbarn turned a page of the newspaper.

Rolling his eyes, Grimmjaw put down his foot and rested one elbow atop wooden desk, cradling his cheek as he closed his eyes, 'Man, wasn't there anything worthwhile here?'. Well, at least it was already Friday and this was the last of his detentions from the old hag… Grunting, Grimmjaw allowed his thoughts to wander, going through random things like his recent tests scores, the bet he won from Shawlong and the stupid 'welcome party' for his cousin that the other dorm occupants had arranged for tomorrow… Yeah, they were _that_ bored to actually have time to plan a fucking welcome party…

"Crazy bastards…" Grimmjaw mumbled as his head hit the desk, his arm (having fallen ahead) now served as a sort of makeshift pillow for the guy. Having Physical Education as the last class for the day certainly had its toll, especially when the topic was soccer and there were simply too many wimps waiting to be kicked in the ass out on the field… A small yawn escaped parted lips as eyelids drooped low and not a minute later, Grimmjaw was back to his dreamland…

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After blinking a few times, the ice blue haired teen found himself standing at the cliff that he'd dreamt about before… Everything was gradually fading into darker hues; it wasn't hard for him to guess that nighttime had befallen the area…

_"Grimmjaw…" a hushed voice spoke, the voice too small to fit a teen._

Cerulean eyes turned towards the sound, muscular body following and Grimmjaw stood bewildered… Another flashback? It seemed so. However, the teenaged Grimmjaw _did not_ want to believe what he saw at that moment… His younger self and the Ulquiorra-kid were there, still at the same garden area, although this time secluded from the rest by a conveniently placed hedge.

The ebony-haired kid was on his back, lying on the dirt-grass; a flute in one hand, the other resting atop another kid… a more than familiar blue-haired kid… a little tanned kid who appeared to be asleep… asleep _on top of the pale guy_! Shit.

'Okay, cool down, Grimmjaw…' the teen reprimanded himself, taking deep breaths as his mind processed everything. 'It isn't _that_ bad… It doesn't _actually_ mean _anything_, right…?'

Grimmjaw gulped, his eyes looking at his miniature self. The little Grimmjaw was undoubtedly in deep sleep, venturing into some blissful dreamland, he concluded, if the rarely seen serenity on his boyish face was anything to go by. The mess of unruly hair lay against the small chest of the green-eyed boy who seemed the least mindful of their current placement.

_"Grimmjaw." Ulquiorra whispered, his free hand gently shaking the other kid who'd been using him as a pillow._

_Feeling the disrupting motions, the blue-haired boy grunted and possessively draped an arm over Ulquiorra's abdominal region, creasing the sky blue fabric of the pale one's shirt. "…Dun' wanna…"_

"…" Jaw dropped, cerulean blue eyes stared in shock as a bright red hue slowly spread on the ebony-haired kid's pale cheeks. Now _that_ was one memory the muscular teen didn't mind _not_ remembering… Sure it was innocent, given that he'd been just a child back then, still it didn't change the fact that his insides churned upon witnessing the supposedly 'chaste' act… What? It wasn't everyday that one would remember himself more or less hugging another guy…

_"Wake up, Grimmjaw." Urgency now seeped into the ebony-haired boy's tone, as he decided to go extreme and began pinching the tanned cheeks, shaking the slumbering child awake._

_"-Ah! Owww… Ulqui!" Grimmjaw's annoyed tone rang about as he was roughly woken from his peaceful sleep. Cerulean eyes glaring angrily at the kid underneath him… wait… **underneath?! **Blue irises went round as saucers as cool green eyes stared back at him, the flush on the smaller boy's cheeks were quite impossible to miss._

_"C-Could you... get o-off… of me…?" Ulquiorra requested, straining to keep the indifference in his voice but found the task quite hard with the blue-haired kid's too-warm body next to his._

_"Right!" The tanned boy promptly pushed himself up and away from his friend, putting a good feet distance in between the two of them._

_"…Thanks." The pale boy murmured, willing away the color from his cheeks. He sat up and began to dust off the dirt from his clothes, holding his precious metal flute in one hand._

_Pointedly looking away, the blue-eyed boy found himself asking in a sheepish tone, "So… erm, w-what happened, again?"_

_Blinking rapidly as he found a small puddle of drool in the middle of his shirt, cool green eyes met with a cerulean pair, a deadpan expression on the pale face. "You asked me to play a song for you and I complied. Then without warning, you suddenly fell asleep… using myself as your pillow. You even drooled on me." Ulquiorra stated, his eyebrows forming straight horizontal lines above his eyes. It was more than obvious that he was **not** the least bit pleased about the situation._

_The blue-haired boy gave the perfect impression of a fish-out-of-water as he continued to stare at his companion with wide eyes as his mouth opened and closed without uttering a single sound._

The teenaged Grimmjaw was not in a better state…His mind seemed to have temporarily shut down as not a single thought came to his mind… H-He actually did that?! Dude… No wonder the guy's hunting him now… He must've had a grudge from this particular event…

_"…And you smell of sweat too… I could smell your odor on my shirt now. **My** shirt, that got unnecessarily grubby when you fell asleep on me." Ulquiorra added, his gaze on his companion unwavering._

_"Uh…" little Grimmjaw began, nibbling on his lower lip as an awkward smile came upon his features. "…I guess I hafta 'pologize to ya…" he scratched the back of his head. "See, Shawlong and the others and I had been running errands all mornin'…"_

_Noticing the other's raised eyebrow, he continued. "Ya see, we gotta earn a bit of money… Can't depend on the parents for everything, y'know… Well, we finished quite late and I had to hurry here so I guess all the work's gotten to me… Sorry 'bout fallin' asleep on ya… Won't happen again, I promise…"_

_The stern expression on Ulquiorra's face softened as he listened to the tanned boy's explanation. "You don't have to go here everyday, you know… It's not like it's an obligation…"_

_"But you were waiting for me, weren't ya?" Grimmjaw tilted his head to a side, "When I came up here, you were sittin' right there, waitin' for me…"_

_Pale cheeks colored once more as green eyes shifted towards the metal flute in his hands. "What made you think it was **you** I was waiting for? I was just… feeling the breeze… from the sea…"_

_Tanned lips quirked downwards, "You're not really good at lying, Ulqui… I'm right, aren't I? You were waiting for me, weren't 'cha?" Grimmjaw shifted closer, the distance between them reduced greatly when he placed his own tanned hands over the pale ones that held the wind instrument._

_Cool green orbs meet a pair of striking blue ones before looking down at their hands. Smiling softly, the ebony-haired boy replied, "I guess I was…"_

_"See, that wasn't so bad now was it?" Grimmjaw said as he lowered his head and met with Ulquiorra's downcast eyes. "Hey, are you doin' anything tomorrow morning?"_

_"W-Why do you want to know?" came the reply, the speaker appearing quite flustered at the minimal space between them._

_"The guys and I are gonna go swimming at the beach tomorrow, and I'd like you to join us…" the blue-haired boy's excitement was more than obvious now._

_Tha pale boy bit his lip, looking quite concerned. "…It's really nice of you to invite me, Grimmjaw, but… I don't think I'll fit in with you guys… Don't take me wrong, okay? But, I don't even know your other friends and they might not like me… And you've only known me for two weeks… I don't think-"_

_"Aw, come on, Ulqui! It'll be fun!"_

_"But, Grimm, I really don't-"_

_"Hey, you're not allowed to call me just 'Grimm'!"_

_"…I'm sorry. Grimmjaw, then, I still don't know-"_

_"But I'll let you call me 'Grimm' if you join us tomorrow."_

_"…"_

_Grimmjaw grinned expectantly as he sat back, pleasantly oblivious to the incredulous thoughts of his companion._

_A sigh escaped pale lips as small hands retracted themselves from the tanned ones above them, instantly missing the warmth once he did so but made no moves to recover it. "Grimmjaw…" he said sincerely. "I deeply regret this, but I can't accept your invitation…"_

_"But WHY?" pale blue brows creased as a wide frown took place on the boy's lips. "It'll be a great chance for you to get to know the others…"_

_"…I don't think they'll like me…"_

_"Bullshit!" the cerulean-eyed boy cussed, his frown deepening._

_"Grimmjaw!" Ulquiorra gasped at the ferocity he found in the other boy._

_"Hell, **I** like you! I can't see why the others can't." Grimmjaw declared stubbornly._

In the background, a tall muscled teen was pretty much nauseating.

_The ebony-haired kid's smile widened considerably, eyes locking onto the instrument he held in his hands. "…I suppose I could try…"_

_"Yeah! Now we're talking!"_

_"Grimmjaw, it's getting late… Shouldn't you be home right now?"_

_"Alright!" the enthusiastic boy declared as he stood up. "I'll see ya tomorrow, okay, Ulqui?"_

_"I said I'll try…" was the aforementioned boy's reply in a weak voice._

_"See ya!" Ruffling the long-ish ebony locks of his friend, Grimmjaw bade goodbye and happily made his way down the face of the cliff; a red tomato-face with green eyes watching his descent._

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**A/N:** …no I have no effin' idea what goes on in detentions since this is a little miss goody-two-shoes here but meh, I tried... More flashies in this chap, and erm... the usual please?

A nice review would surely help in inspiring me to hurry the fuck up in writing the next chap. ;D

Oh, and a little shoutout to **chibi nazumi**... err, I don't know if you ever received my reply to your review on the previous chap but I never got an answer from you... I'm not really knowledgable in the German language so I'd like to ask/plead/beg for a little more info on the German counting system from ya since I kinda saw in your profile that you're from Germany and all... I hope you won't mind... So anyway, here's my question/request: "Can you pretty please relay how they count, or rather, say the numbers from Sixth to Tenth in German?" I'm sort of expecting this fic to not be so short... :D

Any way, I love y'all and 'til the next installment: See ya!


	6. Sechstes Kapitel

The loud growl that escaped the teen's lips was more than enough of an indication of the thoughts in his head… It was bad enough that he'd been caught sleeping at detention yesterday by the pineapple-orange tandem, no less… And now, this?!

"Hey, is drool-boy over there still awake, or do I have to make a stop over to let him have his nap time?" came the snide voice from the driver's seat of the large van.

"Shut it, you stupid berry!" the more than irritated teen gritted out, barely managing to restrain himself to his seat at yet another cutting remark from the owner of the vehicle.

"Goddammit, Grimmjaw, I've told you over and over, it's _Ichigo_! I don't care if you know that my name means 'strawberry' in fucking Japanese, it's _spelled_ as 'one who protects', so stop shitting!"

"Now, now, Ichigo… I thought we've already established that we'd had enough of that…" Il Forte stated in an appeasing tone from the passenger's seat. But even his voice contained hints of amusement.

Loud snickers erupted within the van, as a mightily pissed-off Grimmjaw resorted to just glaring out the window… he'd long ago given up on giving the other retards death-glares as they'd just laugh at him even more when he did so…

Yesterday… was a damn fucking blast. After dreaming out more of his supposed past with this Ulquiorra-kid, he woke up to find that detention had just ended and a couple of fucktwits were watching him… with wide grins… and snickering… He had immediately snarled and made to throw a punch at them but upon feeling the drip of liquid from the corner of his mouth, he stopped short. Instead he shot the two his 'you-didn't-fucking-see-that-so-quit-it' glare as he used the back of his hand to wipe away the trickle of his saliva. Needless to say, the Ichigo-Orange brat and Renji the Pineapple Wonder, followed him back to his dorms; never missing a chance to tattle-tale about the little incident during detention. Everyone at his dorm shared a good laugh about it, although he could always doubt _certain_ people, Il Forte even managed to invite the two rascals over to the stupid 'Welcome Party'.

Ichigo had agreed, seeing as Il Forte and him had almost all their classes together, and he was basically the only 'approachable' guy around with a car that can carry 10 people. Renji, on the other hand, said that he _would've_ liked to tag along but he had _other_ important arrangements… Grimmjaw snorted at the thought, the guy was probably off trying (and most likely failing) to impress a certain girl at the dormitory at the other street.

"Oh, here we are." The blonde at the front declared as he found the area familiar.

"About damn time!" Nnoitra's voice was heard over the rest of the cheers that came forth upon Il Forte's words.

All passengers left the vehicle and found themselves in the middle of a clearing, a sparse grove of tall trees surrounding a rather wide grassy plain.

"How nice…" Tesla murmured as he surveyed the scenery with mocha brown eyes.

"Shall we start laying-out the picnic?" A tall oriental teen suggested, as he stepped out of the van with a picnic basket on one hand and a large folded checkered cloth draped on his other forearm. A smaller gray-haired boy was standing behind him holding another wicker basket with both hands.

"Ah, Shawlong, D-Roy, how thoughtful…" Il Forte complimented as he rushed over to join the two.

"How about we set things up over here?" Szayel's voice rang about, as he stood a bit farther from the group. The pink-haired genius had a smile on his face as he stepped aside and revealed the picturesque view that could be seen in between the trees. It appeared that there was a vast land area filled with tall grass and bright golden poppies. The wind was blowing plentifully, scattering green blades and golden-orange petals everywhere.

"Agreed." Stark noted as he slouched over towards Szayel and sat back against a tree near the prodigy's selected area and closed his eyes, feeling quite wonderful as the cool breeze caressed his face.

"Get going then," Grimmjaw ordered as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his pants, making no indications that he was going to give in a hand.

"Don't just stand there, you lazy ass. Get a move on!" Luppi snapped back as he threw the checkered cloth at his cousin.

The fabric fell atop the muscular teen's head, covering him up to his broad shoulders, making him cuss as he attempted to remove the offending material from his head without ruining his ice-blue hair. "Luppi, you piece of shit!" Grimmjaw snarled, discarding the picnic cloth and chasing the effeminate boy around.

"Can't catch me!" Luppi hollered as he ran around with an angry Grimmjaw behind him, snickering loudly.

The rest just rolled their eyes, ever since Luppi came to the dorms, those two cousins didn't seem to get enough of pissing off one another. Usually ending in a brawl, a couple of scratches on both parties but definitely with loud vulgar cursing heard within a two-mile radius.

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"Who wants to play Frisbee?" Il Forte's loud voice called.

Replies of 'Sure!, 'Yeah!' and 'What the heck?' erupted from the group but almost everyone stood up to join in nonetheless; leaving only two teens leaning against the bountiful trees that surrounded the area.

"You're not joining, Grimmjaw?" Ichigo's inquiring voice came from his right.

Opening one cerulean eye, the one in question looked up at the teen, a glare already set as his default expression. "It's a fucking child's game. I don't want to waste my energy running after some stupid disc. Call me when you sissy's are done prancing around the flowers and decide on a better game…" Grimmjaw said dismissively, closing his eye once again after his statement.

The orange-haired teen frowned and shook his head before heading to where the others were.

"Stupid idiots…" Grimmjaw muttered when the blowing breeze carried the loud cries of his companions to his ears. "Bastards seem to be having fun…" he said to no one in particular, sitting up properly away from the tree trunk. Opening both eyes, he saw that the guys were indeed playing Frisbee out on the field of golden poppies, each one a good distance away from the other. Nnoitra's bony hand managed to take hold of the green circular disc and, completely ignoring Szayel's complaints that _he_ was supposed to catch the disc, he threw it in the direction of Ichigo. The brown-eyed teen, not paying attention to Nnoitra, got hit in the head with the Frisbee… hard. The tallest teen in the group laughed in a sinister fashion as his orange-haired target yelled profanities at him.

Moving to lie on the grass, cerulean eyes surveyed his surroundings. The sky was blue… too blue like a deep ocean. Huge puffs of clouds traveled at a leisurely pace on the blue canvas above him. The leaves and grass rustled gently in the wind, the sound of Stark's light snoring, and the echoes of laughter (and even the swearing) from the game, encircled him. It had been one hell of a week for him… Suddenly remembering his past wasn't exactly his favorite past time but lately it seemed to happen a lot. Well, Il Forte had once commented that it was bound to happen some time but even the blonde didn't know why everything was coming back to him all of a sudden.

His eyes sought out the sky once again, he'd been stressed and he needed to relax… yeah, relax. That was the main reason why he agreed to come here in the first place… Shawlong had told him back when they had decided on the location that they used to play here when they were little. Odd, he couldn't quite remember that time yet but then again, he didn't want to remember so much right now… It was like some locked away past of his were struggling to be freed and Grimmjaw wasn't sure if he could handle the entire information overload that was bound to happen. After all, the Ulquiorra guy practically took up all his dreams, every time he slept; bits and pieces of his time with the pale kid came back to him. One thing that he realized though, was that neither Shawlong nor Il Forte ever got to know this Ulquiorra. His friendship with the green-eyed kid from before appeared to be a secret from his other friends… But why?

Shaking his head, Grimmjaw tried not to think too much, he was here to relax and he was damn well going to get his relaxing time. Focusing his gaze on the sky once again, the ice-blue haired teen found the tension in him slowly slipping away… Blue was indeed a calming color… The blue sky and the slowly drifting clouds passed his eyes… Just as Grimmjaw was about to close his eyes he saw something and had to do a double take… It was still there.

There was a small black hole point blank in the middle of the sky, its size couldn't be bigger than his closed fist but he could feel that something was wrong… When had the sky been so high? Rather, since when had the sky began _moving_ higher? His cerulean eyes were round as they witnessed the phenomena, the sky, the clouds, everything appeared to be moving up and away… Dammit, they weren't moving 'away' they were getting sucked into that black chasm.

Grimmjaw sat up in an instant, a 'WTF?' expression on him as he stared up at the sky. He squinted his eyes, was that a black spot in there? Wait… hell no. The fucking spot was growing… Grimmjaw froze, unable to move as the sight simply shocked him to the core. 'What the fucking fuck?' The whole sky began to spiral in… Moving up and up until it disappeared into the dark hole… Hole? Shit. The fucking thing was some sort of vortex or shit like that… It was sucking everything in… Grimmjaw's head snapped down, eyes widening when he saw that everyone else in the area didn't seem to be disturbed by the phenomena… That or they just didn't see it… But why did _he_ see it? He was damn sure he didn't take any drugs… And he damn well wasn't on any medication… It wasn't his time yet, was it?

Before the cerulean-eyed teen could ponder more, he felt himself rise up… His blue eyes widened, realizing what was happening. His hands clutched onto the blades of grass underneath him, grasping at it tightly but it all ended up useless… His mouth opened as he screamed but the rest of the people in the field seemed to have suddenly gone deaf, not one of them reacting to his profanities. Grimmjaw turned his head trying to see how far he was from the vortex, his blood running cold and his jaw hanging open when he realized that he was already in it… He tried to turn around, wondering if he could _possibly_ crawl his way out of wherever _here_ is, but only found the speed of his ascent increasing… Like some weird sort of gravity was pulling him to some unknown destination… Just as he began to think that this ride would never end, the ice-blue haired teen felt himself fall… The invisible strings pulling at him earlier seemed to have been cut-off and he was now spiraling down… Down where? He didn't know, but just to be safe, the muscled teen assumed a crouched position, shielding his head with his hands with his eyes and mouth shut tight; waiting to hit the ground.

Falling…

Falling..

Falling.

Huh?

Grimmjaw opened his cerulean eyes; if seconds before he was being pulled up and then left falling down, right now it was as if all outside force had withdrawn from his body. He couldn't sense anything around himself… Uncurling himself, Grimmjaw's eyes widened in disbelief when he found himself in a wooden clearing…

A fuckingly familiar wooden clearing… Hell, wasn't this where they were having their stupid picnic right now? But… Where was everybody?

The sun was still out, but the area was empty… no Il Forte or anyone else, no picnic materials, hell, even Ichigo's van wasn't in the vicinity… Where the fuck?

His eyes hastily scanned the area… Looking for anything that might indicate just what the fuck happened… The grass appeared untouched, and so did the surrounding trees… The field! He suddenly remembered, maybe the guys were there and the vortex-thing was just a dream of his. Yeah, that made sense, and with that thought Grimmjaw ran towards the green and orange-hued field. His was heart beating fast as his tanned legs carried him to his destination, getting in between the trees, he could almost reach the area where he could hear a soft melody playing… The green grass ended and he stopped, the orange-ish field was spread in front of him and it appeared to spread for miles beyond his range of vision. And then, in the middle of that field, a lone figure stood… appearing to be the source of the constantly playing sound. A goddamn familiar sound… Calming and quiet…

The figure's back was facing him, the person's ebony-black hair barely reached the shoulders, he wore a long white coat that laid still behind him, his hands were bent in front of his face holding a thin metallic tube.

Grimmjaw stared.

No way…

No fucking way…

The air wasn't moving anymore and yet he could still hear the playing music, soft and low…

He didn't realize when the wind had stopped blowing, everything was still and he could once again hear his heartbeat in his ears. A cold shock went through him and he felt his mouth dry up. He took one tentative step forward; the crunch of the grass beneath his feet was loud and echoed twice in the too-still and too-quiet area.

The other figure made a small movement that showed that he heard the sound but still kept playing.

"U-Ulquiorra?" Grimmjaw's voice was hoarse and with was filled with disbelief but despite that, he felt his insides turn when the other's name left his lips.

The melody abruptly stopped. Pale hands were brought down along with the metallic instrument. Black hair and the white tailcoat rustled gently as the whole body turned around, green eyes locking into a cerulean pair.

The slightest traces of surprise and anxiety were etched on the porcelain face. Pale lips formed a straight line, a line as straight as the dark eyebrows above cool green eyes.

The ice-blue haired teen stared; this Ulquiorra wasn't a kid anymore… The Ulquiorra before him now was the one in his dream where there were white sands. This was image that started it all. He felt his hands run cold; his heart was pounding in his chest… Was this the reason why he'd been having all those flashbacks? So that he could finally face the guy once again?

"Ulquiorra…" the name escaped his lips once again and Grimmjaw was in shock, he hadn't meant to call the teen's name out loud.

The pale teen's lips tightened as if he'd just stopped himself from saying something. Grimmjaw noted how one pale hand seemed to be holding on too tightly at the metal flute, it seemed to be the same as the one in his dreams.

"Y-You recall…" a low voice floated around and cerulean eyes left the instrument and locked onto the now anxiety-filled face.

The muscled teen couldn't quite understand why he found traces of fear in the other's tone… but what puzzled him more was how the cool voice seemed to invite him nearer to the other. His feet moved of their own accord and no sooner did he realize that he'd already crossed the field of golden poppies and was now standing directly in front of the smaller teen.

His eyes stared down at Ulquiorra in a sort of awe, all-week long he'd been waiting to get a chance to talk to this teen once more and now… He felt at a loss of what to say.

"Yeah, I remember… a bit of it…" he found himself replying, an uneasy gruffness in his voice. "…Actually, I've only started to remember you when you appeared to me first…" Grimmjaw's sentence trailed off as he watched those round orbs of green break away from their cold exterior and allowed him a glimpse of the inner turmoil of their owner.

"…I see…" Green eyes broke their eye contact as they looked down at his hand holding his instrument. He knew it… This was his whole fault after all… "You must leave now…" he informed the muscular man in front of him. '… A man…' he mused, 'Looks like you are no longer the child that I had met years ago…'

Hearing the words that escaped the pale lips made Grimmjaw's blood boil… A glare slipped onto his features, a scowl decidedly placed on his lips. "It took me a freaking long time to find you and you're just sending me away like this? I don't think so, you little bastard. I've got a hell lot of questions for you and I'm not leaving wherever the fuck this is until I get some goddamn answers. Got it?"

"You don't understand, you must leave this place immediately," was Ulquiorra's reply in a dead serious tone. "Prolonging your stay here could-"

"I don't give a shit, okay?" Grimmjaw snapped, grabbing the green-eyed teen by the shoulders and shaking him roughly. "You suddenly come into my life, appear in every freaking dream I have, fuck up my life, and now you're asking me to just leave when you don't want to bother your pretty little self with me. Think again, bitch, coz there's nothin' you can do to make me leave."

"…You're as stubborn as ever…" Ulquiorra commented calmly, his face expressionless against the fuming face of the other just inches away from him. A strange constricting feeling suddenly enveloped his chest… a strange feeling that he hadn't felt for years…

Grimmjaw huffed indignantly at the comment, letting go of the smaller teen's shoulders before crossing his arms over his chest.

"Fine, I shall answer any queries that you wish to know… but you must take haste, forget not that this place is not for you to stay in." The tone was much too formal, and the ebony-haired teen's expression was still stoic but still, Grimmjaw could feel the slightest bit of warmth tucked deep within those cold, cold words.

Cerulean eyes stared at the smaller figure. Tanned fists clenched when Ulquiorra looked up at him with those expressionless eyes once again. "Fuck…" Grimmjaw breathed out, a great sigh escaping after. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Damn… He felt his anger dissipating… It was fucking hard to keep being angry with the guy…

Exhaling deeply, the teen ran a calloused hand through his ice-blue hair, his other hand shoved into a pocket of his jacket. Opening his eyes, he stooped a bit lower so that his face was on equal level with Ulquiorra's. He lifted his eyes and fixed them on cool, unwavering green ones. Not a word was said in between them for the longest time. And it was only when he felt a smooth unknown material under his touch that he realized that one of his hands had settled atop the pale teen's head.

Cerulean irises watched as his hand moved on its own, gently raking down the longish ebony locks, quite a different sensation traveling his body as his rough hands flew down the other's silk-like hair. Once he got through the green-eyed teen's hair, his hand almost naturally settled upon it once again, his hold albeit firm but not thoroughly so, as though he feared hurting the smaller teen. When his gaze flicked back on the porcelain face, finding his heartbeats turn uneven when he saw the other's eyes closed, eyebrows arched in a relaxed manner, and thin lips parted… as though he was remembering every minute detail of his small gesture to cherish.

"…What happened to you…?" Grimmjaw found himself asking, an unfamiliar ache settling somewhere in the middle of his chest. His voice was as low as he'd ever heard himself speak, and it was… gentle… A trait he wasn't even aware of possessing.

Pale eyelids slowly opened, the green irises underneath them focusing on the boyish face in front of him. He could feel an assuring warmth spreading throughout his body… A warmth that he'd longed to feel again for so long… Warmth that he knew he'd only find with this man in front of him…

"Grimmjaw…" the name gladly left Ulquiorra's lips… The name that he'd treasured for so long. He could feel his emotionless demeanor slowly slipping away.

The ice-blue haired teen stood up straight, releasing his hold upon the pale teen's head; instantly shoving both hands into the pockets of his jacket, fisting once inside as his own way of self-restraint. Even in his full height, Grimmjaw still found a pair of impossibly green irises staring up at him evenly. Feeling uneasiness creeping up, he broke eye contact and instead stared down at the small patch of poppies and grass between him and Ulquiorra.

"Tell me…" Grimmjaw began, pale brows creasing.

"What happened… to us?"

'Us…' eyelids were cast low over cool green eyes, a frown tugging at one corner of his lips. The cold body of the instrument he held in his right hand becoming eminent as his hold tightened. He'd been afraid of this… But he knew he didn't have a choice if he truly wanted to find peace…

To finish his unfinished business…

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**A/N:** Err, yes…. I suppose this is where the pieces should fall in, right? Was I too vague or was my way of delivering the supposed message just crappy? I'm surprised this fic even got this far. Sorry for the late updatem guys, I had my finals last week, so busy-busy...

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the previous chapter, and of course, to every reader that patronizes this work of mine... Thanks again to Szayel-Chan and chibi nazumi for correcting my chapter titles... lots of love to you guys...

**SPOILER FOR BLEACH MANGA CH. 348**

okay, just my opinion, alright? Is it just me or is Ulquiorra getting cockier by the minute... I mean, damn, he didn't even address Aizen with '-sama' anymore... I'm startin' to harbor a certain dislike for the Cuatra now... I liked him better as Aizen's "yes man" rather than the overcontrolling and self-appraising bitch that he's being at the moment...

Someone call Grimmy to floor the Ulqui-bitch... Call out Shirosaki - Call out Zangetsu - Hell, even get _Kenpachi_ in there to kick that emocar's ass... argh.... ANYTHING!! Yo, Princess, you have full fucking permission to bitch-slap the Cuatra until he regains proper thinking... damn it, KUBO TITE WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ULQUI?!?!

As you can see, I don't really like how Ulqui's turning out... that's just me, though... feel free to reprimand me for my shallow judgments.... :D


	7. Siebten Kapitel

"What happened… to us?"

'Us…' eyelids were cast low over cool green eyes, a frown tugging at one corner of his lips. The cold body of the instrument in his right hand becoming eminent as his hold tightened. He'd been afraid of this… But he knew he didn't have a choice if he truly wanted to find peace… To finish his unfinished business…

Green eyes flicked up and Ulquiorra found that the muscled teen was still looking away from him; discomfort was clearly etched on the boyish features.

"Tell me every single thing…" the taller teen mumbled.

Ulquiorra closed his eyes… Maybe it was already time, after all…

"…I've had just about fucking enough of not knowing…" Grimmjaw's low voice rang about, an uncharacteristic tone of helplessness underlining his statement, his eyes never leaving the sight of the field in front of him.

A silent sigh and Ulquiorra raised his left hand, gently placing it upon the muscled forearm of the teen before him.

Feeling cold fingertips lightly brushing his skin, cerulean eyes turned and found themselves caught in the smaller teen's unwavering green-eyed gaze.

"Then I shall explain it to you to the best of my ability…" the ebony-haired teen spoke. "Tell me where you wish for me to begin my explanation…"

Grimmjaw nodded, deliberately ignoring the sparks of electricity that he could feel where the other's skin touched his. "Why is it that _I_ remember you, when the rest of the guys don't? I've recalled askin' you to join us for some swimming of sorts but then nothing more came after that…"

Ulquiorra blinked slowly, dread slowly creeping over his chest, they were already too near to the end… "I understand, then…" the teen's pale hand turned palms up as though in invitation.

The ice-blue haired teen hesitantly pulled out his right hand and grasped the other's extended palm, the contact spurring foreign sensations that Grimmjaw had effectively pushed to the back of his mind as Ulquiorra began to move forward. His feet followed at an even pace, and he found it quite odd that his and Ulquiorra's linked hands were held up instead of being let down, making it look as though they were making their way towards some sort of formal gathering.

"I advise you not to let go of my hand no matter what happens to the surrounding area…" an emotionless voice that couldn't be confused for anyone else reached Grimmjaw, who only grunted in acknowledgement.

"…Can't ya show any other expression except for that poker face of yours? Geez, you look like ya ain't got a shred of feelin' in ya…" Grimmjaw commented offhandedly, feeling quite ridiculous at the way the smaller teen led him.

"…I… I don't think that such emotions would produce any merit for anything…" came the straightforward answer as the scenery began to change, the orange and green hues of the field swirling and fading into a gray and white monochrome. The swirling becoming bigger by each second, engulfing the two teens who continued to walk towards the center of the whirling mass.

"Tsch."

"We shall be entering my memories," Ulquiorra informed the other, "and by the end of this, I believe that both of us would find the cease of our… restlessness."

Slowly the scenic view of the poppy field warped and distorted, eventually clearing and showing a completely different site; it showed the very same garden that Grimmjaw had often ventured into in his dreams.

_The cold night breeze from the sea gently caressed the fabric of the small kid's clothes, shoulder-length ebony hair swaying. The small figure stood near the edge of a low cliff, appearing to be looking down; the boy then turned around and began to walk towards the house. His pace was moderate and the shadow of a smile had paid homage on those pale lips as the young Ulquiorra Schiffer clutched his precious flute to his chest and headed into the house._

_The interior was decorated with expensive paintings on the walls and miniature sculptures were on every corner. All the furniture were shipped in from various places across the globe, which wasn't really hard given his father's occupation. Stepping into the tiled floors of the house, little Ulquiorra couldn't help but feel that something was wrong; pale hands held his instrument tighter as anxiety seeped into his system._

"_Ulquiorra."_

_The pale boy froze in his tracks, eyes widening a fraction as he recognized the voice that called his name. He straightened his posture before turning to face the speaker._

"_Good evening, Father" Ulquiorra greeted, his green eyes settling upon the tall brunet who stood under the archway that led to the ground floor library._

_The soft smile on his father's lips didn't deceive the pale boy for the chocolate eyes bore into him as though he'd just committed some sort of treason._

"_Good evening to you as well," his father replied, "You seem to be out of breath, Ulquiorra…"_

_The small boy's insides twisted painfully in fear but he allowed no emotion to show on his face. His father was onto him… Damn… Oh. Did he just say that? Grimmjaw must be rubbing off on him… Well._

"_Also, I've noticed that you seem to have formed a habit of going outside just before it becomes dark… You know very well that it is not good for you, yes?"_

"_Of course, Father."_

"_Then, why is it that you continue to do it? I sure hope that it isn't interfering with your practices and other __**more**__ important matters."_

"_Negative, Father. I always make sure that I've finished all other business before going out of the house." Did he sound too defensive? Ulquiorra hoped not. His father was suspicious enough as it is._

"_Ah. Then what is it that propels you to leave the warm comfort of our home? Something? Some__**one**__?"_

_Ulquiorra gulped. 'Well shit' He could almost hear Grimmjaw's voice telling him that at this very moment… How surprising that even in the face of his father, his mind was still being plagued by the cerulean-eyed boy._

_Seeing his child's lack of response, the father gave out a sigh. "I think we need to set a few things straight, Ulquiorra. Follow me, if you will."_

_Despite the kind words, the green-eyed boy could tell that the main meaning was a demand. A direct order that he shouldn't, no- __**couldn't**__ defy even if he tried._

_The pale boy followed the tall man into the ground floor library. The place was adequately large, enough to hold four large bookcases and a sofa set in its midst; fire was burning in the fireplace at the side. The brunet man took his seat at a separate chair and motioned for the child to sit at the sofa opposite him, a low glass coffee table separating them._

_Ulquiorra sat as still as he could, not wanting his father to see his discomfort. 'Discomfort?' the boy thought, 'That's quite a grave understatement…'_

"_Tell me, Ulquiorra," his father began and the little boy was snapped out of his musings, not that it was noticeable anyway. "Who is that kid?"_

_Green eyes stared back at brown ones, and Ulquiorra deeply willed that the fear he felt wouldn't show through. It was rare that his father used this strict of a tone at him. His father's query was straight and he knew the man wouldn't accept any less than a clean-cut answer. But… he couldn't just tell his father about Grimmjaw. He could already see the man's dislike for the boy without even knowing him. What more if the brown-eyed man actually knew his friend's name? It wasn't at all surprising for his father to want to know about the tiniest details…_

"_He's a friend of mine."_

"_A friend?" the smile widened on the man's lips. "I see. Is that why you continue to have trysts with him behind my back?"_

'_Trysts?!' the thought processed itself in Ulquiorra's mind._

"_It isn't like that, Father." The ebony-haired kid quickly bit his lip after that. He didn't mean to say that out loud. He was losing control over himself, he was becoming defensive and his father could see through everything. Ulquiorra hung his head low, hands clutching the metal flute he'd set on his lap. He could already hear his defeat…_

"_Ulquiorra," his father began pleasantly, "Where are your manners?"_

"_I apologize," a small voice replied, the boy had yet to lift his head._

"_I request that you face me, my son. I have an important message for you."_

_His eyes closed and clenching his jaw, Ulquiorra breathed out, steadying his composure before facing his father once more. His father was not the least bit pleased about his actions, he knew that fact well and now, the ebony-haired boy could only anticipate what punishment he was going to receive._

"_Now, I want you to understand Ulquiorra, that I am not against you having… acquaintances…" the brunet man stated. "I would just want you to… __**choose**__ your acquaintances carefully. Do you understand?"_

"_Yes, Father," was the mechanical reply._

"_Do not get me wrong, my son," the man continued, "but I hardly think that a trash like him is worth your time."_

'_But he's my friend! What do __**you**__ know? How dare you call him trash?! You have no idea what you're saying!' these thoughts had very much wanted to get out of the pale boy's lips but he knew he must remain silent. It will not do for him to speak out of turn, especially in front of his father. Still, it didn't diminish the rotting sensation that he could feel inside him._

"_As your father, I know the things that will benefit you from those that could cause your downfall." Chocolate eyes were latched onto the brave front that the boy before him had put up. "And such trash like __**him**__, sad to say, could have detriment effects on your future. And I do not want to ruin that for you. Do you understand, Ulquiorra?"_

"_Yes, Father." Again, he could already feel a part of him dying._

"_Good. Then I would expect that you will follow what I will tell you."_

"_Of course, Father. I will do as you see fit."_

"_Very well said. But I would be more pleased if I see you putting those words into action. Listen, Ulquiorra, you are forbidden from leaving the four corners of this house. Associating yourself with such low-level trash are… unspeakable. Understand that I am doing this for your own good."_

"_I understand, Father."_

"_I am glad that we have come to an agreement, Ulquiorra. You are free to leave."_

"_Thank you, Father."_

_The pale boy stood up and with a polite bow, he left the library. He could feel brown eyes boring into him as he left, it was only when he'd completely exited the room that the boy began to run as fast as he could. Little Ulquiorra rushed up the main staircase, past many identical doors until he came to his room, quickly opening the door and closing it behind him with a soft 'BAM'. Seconds later, the ebony-haired boy was lying on his rather large bed, his metal instrument discarded on the bedside table. Grabbing a pillow, the boy proceeded to bury his face into it and the soft sound of sobbing slowly filled the room._

Eyebrows creased, Grimmjaw could barely restrain himself from rushing back towards the bastard that the kid called his 'Father'. What kind of father was that?! Hell, he'd show him… Seeing the little kid cry… he simply didn't know what the unsettling feeling in his stomach was but it damn left him feeling miserable… and it wasn't for himself… The cerulean-eyed teen hated to admit it, but he actually felt sorry for someone other than himself. The muscled teen turned around, ready to kick a certain bastard's ass into oblivion before a voice stopped him.

"Where do you think you're going?" a practically emotionless voice called him back.

Well, shit.

How could he forget?

With a large frown, Grimmjaw thrust his hands into his pockets and faced the green-eyed teen. Of course, all of this was from Ulquiorra's memory… It all happened in the fucking past, there was nothing he could do now. He went back to his place beside the seemingly stoic teen.

"…Dude, when did this… happen?" the cerulean-eyed teen found himself asking. The hard truth that this was all in the past and he'd done nothing about it just made his anger flare.

"You need not feel responsible for any of this. I did not show you this to make you feel guilty. This particular event occurred directly after you've asked me to join you and your other friends to that swimming affair." The teenaged Ulquiorra's reply was straight; it was as though he didn't even recall feeling anything on this.

Cerulean eyes gazed at the smaller teen from the corner of his eyes. Ulquiorra's face was impassive, quite a huge difference from the kid that he remembered back then. Hell, this Ulquiorra beside him didn't even appear to have a shred of emotion that the bawling image on the bed did. Grimmjaw couldn't help but wonder what could've caused such a change in the ebony-haired teen. Although he already had some sort of inkling as to what it was, the muscular teen still didn't want to believe any of it.

A sudden brightness brought the ice-blue-haired teen back to the scene, which he noticed had now changed altogether. He wasn't in the same dark room from a few seconds ago where the young Ulquiorra was practically crying his heart out. Grimmjaw now found himself in a whole new room, the furnishing was different and it looked as though the room wasn't used so much, if the white sheet covering everything was an indication. Still, he found the younger Ulquiorra staring down at a window at the farthest wall from where he stood. Curious, he moved forwards, standing just beside the image of the green-eyed boy and looked out the window. Blue irises widened when he saw his younger self out there… The window appeared to be set directly above the garden, allowing the viewer to see everything that went on down below.

_Little Grimmjaw climbed up the low cliff like he'd done so many times before. It was early morning and the wind was quite chilly but he paid it no mind as his eyes began to search the whole vicinity for his friend. He looked around, keeping in line with the hedges that surrounded the garden so as not to be seen by anyone. However, he'd already rounded the whole garden and still his ebony-haired friend was still nowhere in sight. He scratched his head as though wondering where the other could be. Appearing to have decided, the tanned boy sat down on the grass, at the very same spot where he'd been last night._

_Young Ulquiorra's eyes widened when he saw the other boy's actions. His palm rested on the window pane and the expression on his face looked like he very much wanted to break the window and run down to his friend but… Despair seeped into the pale boy's face._

"_Grimmjaw…" the boy spoke softly, as though speaking to the glass and hoping that the air would simply carry his words to the blue-eyed boy below. "Just leave… I'm sorry, but…" Ulquiorra pressed his forehead against the glass, green-eyes never leaving the young Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques. "…I'm sorry, I can't even say goodbye to you properly. Please, just leave…"_

_As if on cue, little Grimmjaw stood up. Taking one last sweeping glance of the garden, the blue-haired boy frowned and retreated down the low cliff._

_A bittersweet smile then resided on the pale boy's lips as he watched the tanned boy's descent._

_There was a sound of a door creaking and the young Schiffer turned around, an emotionless façade automatically set in. "What is it?" came the query._

"_The professor has arrived, Young master. He awaits you at the Music Room." A brown-haired butler replied, his wavy hair tied together in a low ponytail behind him._

"_Thank you, you may now leave. I shall proceed there shortly."_

_A bow and then the butler left._

_Green eyes took one last look at the outside, the sad smile shadowing on his lips; he could almost hear Grimmjaw laughing out loud with his other friends at the beach. Pale hands then took hold of a small suitcase that rested against the wall and the ebony-haired kid made his way out. Emotionless. Impassive. Cold._

Grimmjaw could only blink at how well the young Ulquiorra kept his expressions. It was as though he was reserving them, if not hiding them from everyone else. And, well, he may have been called heartless at times, but he definitely saw the unspoken hurt that the pale kid experienced. Looking back at the teenaged Ulquiorra, the muscular teen thought that he could still see those emotions buried underneath cool green orbs. Emotions that were held back expertly through many years of practice. Hands fisted and glare intensified, Grimmjaw walked back towards Ulquiorra.

Cerulean irises locked onto green ones, neither pair blinking even as the scenery surrounding them abruptly changed.

"You were hurt, weren't ya?" Grimmjaw stated, glaring down at the still emotionless façade of the teenager.

Silence.

Ulquiorra just stared up at the other, eyes betraying none. Nonetheless, he found himself quite taken aback at the taller one's indulgence of his past. In all honesty, he expected the guy to just stand back and watch, not to go forward and get involved with his memories. And then there was Grimmjaw's questioning, he'd long ago recognized the man's curiosity for things… but for them to last till now, more specifically, for the man's curiosity to go into **his** own emotions… Grimmjaw should not, no- _must_ not dwell on it. The ebony-haired teen thought furiously to himself, '_I_ must not dwell on this.'

"Then why the fuck didn't you do anything about it?" Grimmjaw ground out, grabbing the smaller teen by the front of his shirt. God, he had just about enough of the little shit's silence.

"…I don't believe that any of that is your concern…" was the reply he received.

"Why you little fucker…" the glare intensified just as his hold on the other's pristine white clothing tightened. "You can't just-"

"Why do you care so much? These are merely recollections; it is of no use to feel for past events." Ulquiorra continued, unfazed.

"Coz damn…" the ice blue-haired teen finally ended up putting down the other, his resolve once again crumbling before him. He… He just can't take it… His hold on the front of Ulquiorra's shirt loosening but he never let go. "…I hate looking at you… seeing you like this…" Cerulean eyes were on par with greens, "…Back in **my** dreams… in my recollections… You were so fucking full of life! We were having fun back then… Why… Why are you like this?"

It took a lot of self-restraint for Ulquiorra to remain still when every inch of his being goaded him to just lean in to the other's warmth.

"Your emotions… your laugh… your smile… Where did they go?" A hand settled against a porcelain cheek, calloused fingertips awkwardly touching the cool skin.

The green-eyed teen appeared pensive for a few moments. Of course, he already knew the answers to Grimmjaw's inquiries but he _also_ knew that his answers would never satisfy the muscled teenager.

"Goddammit, say something, would ya?! I feel like an idiot talking to myself over here!"

"… I apologize."

"Oh for the love of god! Stop speaking like you're already dead! Everything about you appears like that! You speak with no emotions, and you act like you're just some stupid soulless puppet! But ya aren't dead you creepy bastard, so stop it!"

"What makes you so sure?" Ulquiorra found himself asking, curiosity getting the best of him for once in his life.

"I _know_." Grimmjaw replied without second thought. "Just looking in your eyes, damn, even if you barricade your emotions in there, one way or another, they'll fucking show. So stop shitting. Why can't you just let them out, you stupid bastard?"

Green eyes continued to stare back at ceruleans, maintaining their stance despite the obvious attempts of the other to bore into him. "Why? Why do you care so much?"

"Because it isn't you! Damn it, stop being so fucking difficult!"

Grimmjaw was already at wits end, his anger was practically written all-over his face.

"You are… stubborn." Ulquiorra stated plain-out. "Did it never occur to you that people change and I am nothing more than a mere human as well?"

"Yes, yes, everyone fucking changes but you… you're… Agh! You never changed! You just locked yourself up…" eventually, Grimmjaw's voice fell low, as though a sudden realization has just hit him, his eyes were cast down as he expressed his thoughts. "You fucking isolated yourself, didn't ya? That's what all your masks were for…"

"… Contrary to your belief, I didn't isolate myself…" came the unexpected reply, causing blue irises to stare back up at him.

A dead silence followed as Grimmjaw waited for the ebony-haired teen to elaborate. Ulquiorra blinked slowly, an unidentifiable shock coursing through the taller teen when he opened his eyes once again. In a span of slow seconds, the endless pool of green that were his eyes were filled with the one thing that the muscled teen had been asking for throughout the short ordeal… emotion.

The liquid pools of a cool green hue were bombarded with so much emotion that Grimmjaw found his mouth drying just staring at it. So many feelings locked in for so long. However, one thing seemed to outshine all the others, the delicate arch of ebony brows and small frown on pale lips only served to amplify the expression of that feeling…

"…It's just that nobody else was able to see through me and break my defenses…"

Regret.

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**A/N:** No, I didn't mean for this to turn out all mushy-romance stuff… Aizen-damn it, it just happened!! Was it any good? Please do tell me in a review.. rant at me, if you want... I want to know your take on this chap... :D


	8. Achte Kapitel

"…It's just that nobody else was able to see through me and break my defenses…"

Regret.

That was the sole emotion that overshadowed everything else. Ulquiorra's soft voice was laced with it. The emotion was just so… _raw_… so genuine… The cerulean-eyed teen felt himself rattled to his very core by simply witnessing it.

"Ulquiorra, what-?" but before Grimmjaw could elaborate on his sentence, another person spoke.

"_ULQUI! ULQUI! WAIT!!"_

The tone was urgent and the voice was all-too familiar. Pairs of green and blue eyes turned towards the scene that had presented itself before them…

_They were in front of the mansion; a sleek white limousine was waiting by the tall front doors. Two straight lines of maids and butlers, each one of them in uniform, stood nearby as the house owners made their way down the short flight of stairs towards the awaiting vehicle. Father, mother, and son were all dressed to impress, the crisp tuxedos and long-flowing gown purposely showing off the family's wealth. Everything had been quiet. Everything had been without flaw._

_Had been._

_"ULQUI! HEY, ULQUI! WAIT!!"_

_Heads turned and frowns graced lips. A certain pair of cool green eyes widening considerably when they saw a more than familiar figure running up towards them. Towards him… Oh crap._

_His ice-blue hair standing up like always, the tanned boy quickly ran, ignoring the two guards who were chasing him._

_The hand tightened on his shoulder, and Ulquiorra didn't need to look up to know that his father was not pleased. His eyes locked back onto his friend's. The fierce determination never left the boy's face as he dodged persecutors and continued to run. The ebony-haired boy was quickly losing an internal battle that told him to stay put._

_'Grimmjaw…' Ulquiorra couldn't help but think wearily, 'You shouldn't have done this.'_

_Swallowing hard, the pale boy gently set down the small leather suitcase in his hands, eyes decidedly not meeting his father's whom he knew must be internally cursing him at the moment. Never was he the type to disobey orders… but rules really have the tendency to get broken once in a while. Without another word, Ulquiorra turned about and sprinted away, running like no one had seen him go before._

_Blue eyes widened when they witnessed the other boy's actions, actions that seemed to fuel him as he felt himself run faster, to avoid being caught now that he'd gone this far as well as to reach Ulquiorra quicker. "Ulqui!" little Grimmjaw panted as he finally met up with the aforementioned boy somewhere in the middle of the asphalt driveway._

_"You shouldn't have come here, Grimm-" The pale boy tried to explain…_

_"Ulquiorra!"_

_But that was before a solid fist met with his right cheek, courtesy of the ice-blue haired boy right in front of him. "You idiot!"_

_The green-eyed boy stumbled backwards, irises going wide as he slowly turned back to face his assailant, a bright red mark on his cheek. "G-Grimmjaw…"_

_"You stupid, stupid goddamn idiot!" Grimmjaw burst out, brows meeting together. "What happened to ya? It's been a fucking week and you never showed up! And just where do you think you're going?!"_

_"Grimmjaw," the ebony-haired kid whispered urgently. "I'm sorry but I cannot keep seeing you anymore."_

_"What?! Who said-"_

_"Listen to me, okay?" a deep sigh, "I strongly advise you against venturing here anymore. You should just forget about going here anymore, alright? I…" Green eyes expressed the unvoiced helplessness in his tone. "I just want to say goodbye. Thank you for everything, Grimmjaw, but you must leave me now."_

_"Don't talk shit like that-!"_

_"I know you're angry at me right now, but trust me, this is for the best for both of us."_

_"Did I do something?!"_

_"Grimmjaw… please…"_

_"Not till you give me a goddamn good reason- Hey!"_

_Two guards had sneaked up behind the kid unnoticed since the boy was preoccupied and as such, they easily grabbed the tanned boy's arms and pinned the appendages at the kid's back._

_"Who do ya think you are?! Let go of me!" the captured boy growled, turning his glare towards the uniformed men that held him back._

_"We apologize, young master, our incompetence has allowed this vermin to enter the vicinity." The men said in unison, seemingly unaffected by the trashing boy that was in their hands._

_"Ulquiorra," the unmistakable voice of the ebony-haired boy's father was heard and everything else came into silence, all attention was turned onto the tall brunet. "I think we've already wasted enough time here. Let's go." As if to further emphasize his point, the tall brunet waved one hand and the limousine's chauffeur opened the car door, the blonde woman daintily stepping inside. Chocolate eyes bored into greens. "We're waiting, Ulquiorra."_

_Cool green eyes broke the contact and turned towards his friend… Friend. How uncommon for him to use the noun. Blazing cerulean orbs met his own, and the vice grip in his chest only seemed to tighten._

_"Grimmjaw-"_

_"Ulquiorra, don't you dare!" Grimmjaw cut in with a growl. "I don't want to listen to you anymore. **You** listen to **me**."_

_The pale boy could only blink. Even if he was the underdog in the situation, the cerulean-eyed boy was still hardheaded._

_"I don't know what the fuck anybody's told ya, but you have got to stand up for your fucking self. Don't be some stupid yes-man!"_

_"I…" What was that insistent pounding in his ears?! He couldn't think straight. His father was already way past his 'pissed-off' line and yet… And yet he couldn't bring himself to just turn away… to turn away from Grimmjaw. Just thinking about it made his head hurt._

_"Ulquiorra, we are about to leave."_

_For the first time that he could remember, Ulquiorra completely disregarded his father's call. He knew the consequences, and he knew that it would be dire but still… He took a step towards Grimmjaw, carefully noting the short shock that flitted through the boyish face._

_"I knew ya could do it." Grimmjaw said with a smirk playing on his lips._

_With merely a foot in between them, Ulquiorra hung his head low._

_"U-Ulqui? Ulqui, what's wrong?!" worry crossed the blue-eyed boy's features, he made to move forward but the guards' hold on him prevented him from doing as such._

_"I'm sorry, Grimmjaw." The green-eyed boy whispered, his voice just loud enough to be heard by the other. "But you don't know what my father can do. He can hurt you in so many ways if you continue to associate yourself with me, and I do not want that to happen." The black head slowly raised, allowing the other boy a glimpse at himself._

_"Ulqui, are you-?" Irises widened. No shit? Is that really…_

_"Shh." Ulquiorra hushed, and in a well-calculated movement the pale boy wrapped his arms around the tanned boy's shoulders._

_Grimmjaw froze, feeling cool skin settling against him, a flawless porcelain cheek pressing up against his own rather rough counterpart. Shit._

_"Forget about me," soft words were whispered in his ears. "I sincerely thank you for everything but you are endangering yourself. Leave, Grimmjaw. This will be my last request of you… as a friend. Forget and leave. Goodbye, Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques."_

_He couldn't move. Grimmjaw couldn't fucking move and he knew to himself that it wasn't only because some stupid guards were restraining him. Cerulean eyes sought out green ones but the other never set eyes on him as they broke apart._

_"Let go of him," came the strict order from the small boy._

_Immediately the vice-like grip on his wrists were no more but still the young Jeagerjacques found himself immobile._

_Ulquiorra then turned around, a barricade of indifference already in place as he walked up to where his father was awaiting him with a perpetually genial smile._

_"Forgive me for taking so long, Father," the pale boy said without meeting the tall man's gaze._

_"All is well, my child. Let us proceed then, posthaste." His father's tone didn't betray the irritation that he knew was probably brewing inside the man at his actions. He'd just embraced the person his father had labeled as trash right in front of his eyes; surely retribution would be due._

_Ulquiorra took a seat opposite the blonde woman, facing the back of the car. His father soon stepped into the vehicle after him and seated himself beside the blonde. The limousine's engine soon started and the car began to move. Green eyes focused on the small suitcase on his lap, he could still feel the stinging of his cheek where Grimmjaw's fist had collided. Grimmjaw… No. He mustn't be distracted. He should…_

_"Sir, the boy is blocking our driveway." The chauffeur's rather surprised tone resounded, his tone indicating his uncertainty of what to do._

_"Continue driving."_

_Despite his internal pact to appear indifferent, Ulquiorra wasn't able to stop himself form reacting upon hearing the words that had just left his own father's lips. There was no hesitation in the brown-haired man's answer. That scared him. His small body quickly turned about, eyes fearfully latched onto the scenery that the vehicle's windshield provided. Sure enough, there was Grimmjaw… standing dead-on at the center of the asphalt driveway, both arms extended._

_'No way.' At that moment, Ulquiorra didn't even care that the suitcase that carried his beloved flute was on the car floor. His cool eyes were fixated at nothing else but the seemingly unmovable and decided boy that stood in the path of their car. 'Grimmjaw, you wouldn't…'_

_But the look that the cerulean-eyed boy had on his face spelled nothing except, 'Yes I would.'_

_"Drive faster, you wouldn't want us to be late now, would you?" His father seemed to be taunting him, despite the fact that the statement was addressed to their driver._

_"But, Sire, the boy-"_

_"I said drive."_

_Pale fingertips bore into the vinyl seat covering. 'Please no…' They were no more than a few meters away from the boy now, their vehicle was still gaining speed, and Grimmjaw continued to stand there. 'Move… Grimmjaw, move!' Ulquiorra was practically screaming in his mind._

_It happened all too soon. The driver, fearing for his job, had no choice but to do as he was ordered. The young boy still stood his ground, not even Ulquiorra knew what was going on in his mind. Apparently, the green-eyed boy's silent pleas never reached his friend. A dry gasp was all Ulquiorra could muster. The scenario was too much for him to completely grasp. It only meant one simple thing for him._

_It was his fault._

_The limousine sped off like nothing happened, the all-too still figure of the young musician a complete paradox to all the explosions that the boy could feel going on within him. Not a sound was emitted from the other passengers in the vehicle, and yet the loud reverberating noises in his ears were almost enough to make him go deaf. Despite the loud screams, a low voice rose above the rest… It consisted of only one word, one word that completely matched the movement of tanned lips as their owner tumbled across the front._

_'Never.'_

And then there was none, insignificant flashes of unimportant events that came later took the spot but the images were gray-scaled and the voices were indistinguishable.

Grimmjaw stared unblinkingly at nothing.

"Do you understand now?" his sole companion asked, the slightest bit of sorrow present in the tone.

"That…" tanned hands unconsciously let go, fingertips rising to touch his own forearm where the dissolved traces of stitches that had once scarred him laid. "That was the reason why I got hospitalized… why I had gotten all that amnesia and shit…"

"I believe that to be so…"

"… Is that also yer reason for suddenly disappearing from my life…?" the muscled teen found himself asking, his mind processing all the raw information as fast as it could. Despite everything, though, only one thing was made clear in his mind… This was how it all happened.

Ulquiorra turned his eyes away, and from his peripheral vision, he could see his memories fleeing by like some old film. "You saw what happened when your younger self got associated with me. Ever since that moment, when you unintelligently decided to stand in the way of our limousine, when you refused to move believing that there was still something that you could do, when you simply stood there staring at me… Do you have any idea how traumatic such an experience could be? I… I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what I **could **do. Grimmjaw, you scared me back then. Your uncalculated actions… There were a lot of things that you shouldn't have done that day."

"But I did." Grimmjaw interrupted, using one hand to force the smaller teen to face him.

"Yes. And you've forever scarred my mentality," Ulquiorra replied, suddenly finding himself face-to-face with the other. "…I've never forgiven myself for getting you into that situation. If I had known my place from the start, if I had known that keeping ties with you would have brought such peril upon you…"

"But you fucking didn't know that before and it doesn't matter. What are you getting at, Ulquiorra?" cerulean irises narrowed.

"…Sorry won't be enough to compensate for everything that happened to you because of me." The ebony-haired teenager replied with pain-filled eyes.

"I did everything of my own free will. You've got nothing to be sorry for." His companion's rather agitated reply as he relinquished his hold on the other.

"But-"

"Geez, can't you take a hint?" I don't **want** you to be sorry." Grimmjaw huffed, crossing his arms, peering down at the smaller figure in front of him.

A perplexed look washed over the pale teen's mien. "But if I hadn't entered your life, you wouldn't have gotten into that situation, you wouldn't have got hospitalized… Your life would've gone better…"

"Ya sure about that?"

"Positive."

"Well I don't think so."

"Grimm…jaw…?" The exclamation turned into a query as a calloused hand settled atop ebony hair, cool green eyes going wide as dinner plates.

"I ain't angry at ya, you stupid bastard," Grimmjaw huffed. "What's life without a bit o' risk?"

"You don't… hate me…?" came the mostly unbelieving inquiry.

"Why should I?" was the taller one's comeback, complete with a grin on his lips.

"…For everything…"

"Listen here, you, the past is the fucking past… I'm just glad I made it out of that accident alive…"

"I see."

"That and the fact that I got to meet you again…."

"…" Ulquiorra couldn't find the words to reply to that.

"Honestly, life was getting fucking boring but then you suddenly appeared to me," he patted the ebony hair, "And even though the shitty display that you made of appearin' in my dreams kinda freaked me out at first, I… Well, let's just say I'm glad I got to know you… even if it was literally all over again."

"I suppose this is the end then…" The pale teen murmured.

"The end? What the hell are ya talkin' about?" Pale blue brows knitted together.

"I thank you for settling everything Grimmjaw…" Supple lips relaxed from their usual tight-lipped feature, delicate brows arching as glass-like green eyes softened. A smile… A genuine smile tugged at pale lips.

Finding his mouth suddenly dried up, the tanned teen could only stand back and watch mutely as the impassive figure melted into the open features that he'd longed to see again. The look that he could vividly remember from the days at the cliff, when it had only been the two of them… Maybe they could return to those times… Yeah.

"…It's time for us to go… I have finally found my peace," Ulquiorra stated pleasantly. "I appreciate that you've left your other friends to find me here, but now you really must go back."

"L-Left? I never left-"

"You did. There is no other explanation as to why a living being such as yourself has reached this place." Ulquiorra still had a small smile on his face but something was wrong with it.

Grimmjaw simply gawked. "W-What?! Ulquiorra what the heck are you saying?!"

"I… I am not exactly what you can call alive right now."

"Dude, I can fucking hold you! What are you shitting on about?" As if to emphasize, tanned hands raked down the silk-like ebony hair, resting at the pale one's nape, holding the place securely as to prove his point.

Dark brows met at the middle, smile turning bittersweet, his eyes however stayed strong. "You've overstayed… Consequences await you if you are not to return to your earthly body."

"I thought we already had everything fixed! I can't understand you!" Was he going to disappear again? Ulquiorra was definitely not the type to joke around, but his words can't possibly be true… Grimmjaw wouldn't believe it. He pulled the smaller one closer to him, his unoccupied hand instinctively clutching the other's shoulder.

Green eyes blinked, in a span of a split second he found himself in extremely close proximity with his taller companion, a hand enclosing his right shoulder keeping him in place. "Grimmjaw?"

"You aren't fucking going anywhere." Grimmjaw declared, not exactly giving any shit if his voice sounded possessive. "So quit yapping like that. I've told you this before and I'll repeat myself again: No. Never. Not a fuckin' chance that I'll let go of your whiny ass again."

Ulquiorra did his earnest not to think too much of Grimmjaw's previous statement and instead focused his attention on what must be done. Due to the notable difference in their stature, the pale teen had to look up to meet cerulean blues. Hands were gingerly raised until they gently cupped well-chiseled tanned cheeks. Warmth.

"I'm afraid neither of us has a choice this time…"

Blue irises widened as cool lithe lips paid homage on his right cheek.

"Goodbye… Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques."

Like grains of sand, the setting began to dissipate; part-by-part was disintegrating into finer particles until they disappeared completely.

'No…'

Tanned hands' hold immediately tightened on the smaller body against his but like the sands on a beach, they slowly began to disperse his hands, mockingly seeping away in between his fingers.

'Don't…'

Green pools of emotion locked into him. A contented smile settled upon pale lips.

'Ulquiorra…'

Darkness took the place of the degenerated surroundings… The ebony-haired teen in front of him was not much of a difference…

"ULQUIORRA!!

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"Faster!"

"Dammit, I'm going as fast as the speed limit would fucking allow!"

"That's not fast enough!"

"Drive more carefully you imbecile!"

"Everybody calm down!"

"How can you tell me to calm down when not one of you can tell me what the fuck happened!"

"Grimmjaw you motherfucker, don't you fucking dare die on us!"

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**A/N:** Okay, first of all, I was supposed to update this yesterday but the Graduation Ball affair that we had here kinda distracted me... so apologies to everyone.

About this chapter... errr… suspense..? Haha... I'm sorry for the load of drama that was injected in this... but well, maybe that's just me... What do _you_ think of this chapter? Please do leave a review.... :D


	9. Neunten Kapitel

"Ow! What the fuck?!" Ichigo snapped, his body thrown on the ground as he held the offending object in his hands. Waving the green-hued disc, the orange-haired teen shouted, "Nnoitra you bastard! That's the fifth fucking time you've hit me!"

"Hey, 's not _my_ fault ya can't catch properly…" the onyx-haired teen replied with a shrug, a sneer on his lips.

"I _can_ catch properly, jackass! I'm just tired, we've been playing under the midday heat for god knows how long now…" As if to emphasize, the brown-eyed teen wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"Well, you may be right, Ichigo… What does everyone else think?" Il Forte decided to cut in as to avoid having the first two teens banter. Truthfully, the blonde himself was already feeling quite queasy since he wasn't exactly the physical type.

"Il Forte, I'll out myself for now…" A heavily sweating Chinese teen called, one hand raised up as if to excuse himself.

"Heh, I'm still in!" D-Roy called, pumping a fist in the air just to show his readiness.

Soft panting sounds caught the tallest teen's ears, slanted coal black eyes turned to his right where he found his roommate with his hands on his knees, breathing hard. "Yo. You still alright there, Tesla?"

Hearing his name called out, mocha eyes lifted and the smaller teen straightened his posture. "I am alright." Tesla replied, a soft smile gracing his lips. Nnoitra asked him if he was alright… Nnoitra had actually _asked_ him… Nnoitra was concerned about him. Oh joy…

"Che…" Seeing the dirty-blond-haired teen go into his 'fantasizing-mode' (as he'd chose to call it), Nnoitra averted his gaze and planted his hands on his hips. "So, does any other sissy want to chicken out?" He received a pointed glare from the retreating Shawlong but he paid it no mind.

"Alrighty then!" Jumping up, Ichigo got to his feet dusting off the dirt from his clothes.

"Just throw the disc, you stupid berry, before I bash your head into the field." Luppi hollered from his place right beside a snickering Szayel.

"What did you say?!"

"Well, you do seem to blend in perfectly with the poppies." The pink-haired genius explained gleefully, referring to the orange-gold hue that the field of flowers was emitting.

"Why you little bitch…" Orange brows furrowed and a pulsing vein was quite visible on the teen's forehead. "I oughta-"

"GRIMMJAW? GRIMMJAW?! SHIT! STARK WAKE UP! COME OVER HERE AND HELP ME!"

It was undoubtedly Shawlong's voice, a couple of eyes blinked as the usually reserved teen now sounded albeit hysteric. Seven heads turned towards the source of the unexpected exclamation. Confusion was the main expression on their faces as all on-going conversations came to a dead-silent halt.

"Stop being so loud Shawlong…"

They heard the voice of the dorm's head boy float about with underlying tones of exasperation, surprise and intrigue. A few seconds passed before another sound was heard again, this time it was nothing but serious. "Shawlong call everyone together. We have an emergency."

The word 'emergency' flew across each teen's mind; a split second after the word was heard, Szayel was already running back to the clearing. The rest of the guys seemed to have snapped out of their initial shock once the dorm's resident prodigy moved, each of them going at their fastest pace.

"What happened?!" Szayel Aporro asked, not even bothering to note that, in his panic, his tone was nothing below a shriek.

"G-Grimmjaw…" Shawlong shakily replied, his voice low as he seemed to be out of breath from his earlier outcry.

The golden-eyed teen quickly rushed past the Chinese, kneeling beside Stark who was squatting beside the ice blue-haired teen.

"Stark, what's going on?" Nnoitra found himself asking, going past the apparently sorta-traumatized Shawlong who was being attended to by Il Forte; the tall and bony teen now loomed over the three people who were situated right smack in the middle of the forest clearing.

"Grimmjaw's not breathing…" Stark answered shortly as the bespectacled teen beside him conducted quick first aid check ups.

"Grimmjaw's… not…" Disbelief was neatly scrawled all-over the features of Tesla, who stood beside his roommate.

"We need to get him to a hospital. Quick." It was rare that Szayel abandoned his coquettish front for a thoroughly grave expression, and right now might possibly be the first ever time that the teen did it on a large scale. The coy smile and playful glimmer in the golden eyes were replaced with severity. "What are you waiting for, his life might be endangered if we don't move!"

"Everyone, quick! Ichigo, prepare your car."

"On it!"

"D-Roy, Luppi, fix up our picnic materials."

There was a reply of "Gotcha", and a nod from the other.

"Shawlong, come on…" The tanned blonde finished directing the others and was now escorting the worn down Chinese teen back into the van.

"Careful!" Szayel noted as the combined forces of Nnoitra, Tesla and Stark carried the unconscious form of one Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques.

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"Faster!"

"Dammit, I'm going as fast as the speed limit would fucking allow!" This was definitely not Kurosaki Ichigo's ideal 'relaxing day out' but he didn't exactly have much time to dwell on that, what, with seven people breathing down his neck, thinking wasn't really the biggest help.

"That's not fast enough!" He may not be exactly close to the teen in peril but the idea of losing a friend wasn't exactly Tesla's cup of tea.

"Drive more carefully you imbecile!" Szayel screeched, holding the un-breathing teen in place as they drove across a particularly bumpy road.

"Everybody calm down!" Il Forte called out in earnest. His head was hurting as dozens of thoughts continued to buzz inside him. Grimmjaw… What happened to him? Food poisoning? Cardiac arrest? So many things to consider… Not to mention that his other friend, Shawlong, was also having his own share of casualties.

"How can you order me to calm down when not one of you can tell me what the fuck happened!" Nnoitra snapped, crossing his arms with a scowl on his face. Everyone kept screaming nonsense, and that alone irritated him to no end. Aside from that, the fact that they had no fucking clue in what happened to the muscled teen, who now lay across the seat in front of him, only served to befuddle their group even more.

"Grimmjaw, you motherfucker, don't you fucking dare die on us!" Luppi spoke through gritted teeth, effeminate hands clutching albeit more than necessary on his seat. Despite the harsh words, delicate black brows were creased and lilac eyes showed utter perplexity.

Shawlong was clutching his head, eyes downcast and had not spoken a word ever since the ride began. D-Roy looked like he'd swallowed some particularly bad-tasting medicine, both his hands gripping on to the hem of his t-shirt, not really caring if the once well-pressed shirt was now creased.

"Right there!" Il Forte pointed out the large white structure that was just up ahead. "Go straight to the Emergency Area."

"Okay." Maneuvering the van was a trivial task for an experienced driver, and in no time at all, the vehicle was parked directly in front of the doorways leading into the Emergency Area's lobby.

Sliding open the van door, Stark headed the way out where a stretcher was already awaiting them. Four hospital nurses therein took over, lifting Grimmjaw's unconscious body onto the thin mattress of the stretcher. Stark and Szayel ran along with the nurses, deeming that they would be needed there for information and the likes. Meanwhile, the others got out of the van before Ichigo headed off to park the car. Shawlong was escorted by another nurse to have his blood pressure checked, Il Forte and D-Roy stayed with the teen whilst Luppi led the others to catch up with the bespectacled genius and the head boy.

The effeminate newcomer's group soon located their dorm mates, having spotted the goatee-ed teen sitting down on one of the plastic chairs that aligned the hallway as Szayel appeared to be conversing with a hospital staff who held up a clipboard and scribbled notes.

"I'd have to request that you stay close by Mr. Granz," the plump little nurse said, holding her clipboard tightly by her side. "Doctors and nurses are now doing their best to recognize the cause and most likely fix Mr. Jeagerjacques' predicament."

The pink-haired teen nodded and the nurse went away.

"Szayel Aporro, I demand to know what happened." A lilac-eyed guy immediately stated as he walked up to the aforementioned man.

"Luppi…" the golden-eyed teenager adjusted his glasses, his tone becoming considerably much calmer than before. "Grimmjaw's been sent to the Emergency Room, there are doctors and nurses with him now, that desk nurse just now had confirmed that. S-She said that there had been a few cases like this before and that there was a fifty-fifty chance…"

"Fifty-fifty?!" The scowl on Nnoitra's lips magnified upon hearing the prodigy's words.

"Calm down, Nnoitra…" Stark finally spoke up, his voice carrying the same bored tone as always but at the moment it was laced with apprehension and forced calm. "Blowing our tops off with an unknown situation at hand won't do any of us any good."

"Err, sirs?" A polite voice cut in between the conversing teens, automatically getting their attention turn to a male nurse that stood before them. "We understand that you're all worried for your friend but I must ask some of you to leave, you're causing quite a blockade in the halls. We do have a policy of, at most, two visitors per patient, sirs."

The five teens looked at each other, wordlessly asking which one of them should stay or not.

"I'll stay right here." Szayel said confidently, eyes now flicking back and forth amongst the other dorm members to see who'd be willing to wait the whole ordeal out with him.

Seeing Tesla's distressed face, Nnoitra shook his head. How could he forget? The brown-eyed boy had quite an absurd fear of hospitals, something about the smell of medicine and chemicals mixed together and whatnot. A pale bony hand scratched his nape, "Tes and I won't exactly be of much help here, so I s'pose it's either Luppi or Stark who'd accompany ya…" the raven-haired teen spoke, blatantly ignoring the honoring looks that he received from his dirty-blonde haired roommate.

Stark's dark eyes bore into lilac ones. The eye contact lasted for a couple of seconds before the head boy stood up and declared that he'd missed his naptime.

"…I guess I'll be staying then…" Luppi said in an awkward fashion. Now he knew why all the other teens at the dorm practically revered the goatee-ed brunet.

Walking ahead of Nnoitra and Tesla, Stark casually waved a hand as a sign of 'see you later' at the other two who were left behind.

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"How's Shawlong?" Tesla asked at once when they managed to locate Il Forte, D-Roy, and Ichigo standing like guards outside a closed door.

"He's in there with a doctor, they're havin' some sort of a consultation." D-Roy replied, his forlorn look shared by Il Forte who seemed to have finally gotten exhausted from all the drama.

"And Grimmjaw…?" it was Ichigo's turn to inquire.

"E.R." was Nnoitra's simple reply and a cloud of gloom appeared to hang over the small group of students.

The soft creaking noise made by the opening door brought the teenagers out of their musings; Il Forte, being the quickest amongst the rest, instantly found his place beside the Chinese, already questioning the doctor. Thanking the man profusely, the blonde led Shawlong to where their other dorm mates were gathered.

"The doctor said it wasn't grave but Shawlong should acquire much rest as soon as possible." Dark irises seemed to dim as the tanned blonde spoke, his whole aura quite frankly saying that he had no intention to leave the hospital but he was torn since Shawlong also needed medical attention that greatly differed from Grimmjaw's situation.

"Don't worry, Szayel and Luppi are staying to watch over Grimmjaw." Stark stated nonchalantly, left hand covering up a yawn. "Our priority now is Shawlong."

Relief washed over Il Forte's face upon hearing the other's words. "Okay."

"Seriously, I gotta be gettin' some payment for driving you guys all around like this…" Ichigo murmured under his breath half-joking, as the group of high school students went out of the hospital.

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How long has it been? Seconds? Minutes? Hours? He didn't know and he surely could have cared less about the time but at the given situation, he knew that time was important. How long have those doctors and nurses worked in there? Trembling hands raked through cherry blossom pink locks of hair. He shouldn't be so negative; he had to believe in those trained people to save his friend. They can save him. Yes, they can. He had to believe in that… He had to…

"Hey."

The pink-haired teen looked up in time to find a can of cola thrown at his direction, catching the cold beverage with both hands he looked up with a small grateful smile at the smaller guy who sat beside him.

"Ya look like he's already dead in there…" Luppi commented casually as he opened his own can and took a short sip. "Toughen up, will ya? The way I knew Grimmjaw, that bastard ain't gonna die until he says he wants ta… And do ya think he had a say in the situation? No. So don't get all depressed and shit."

Understanding the context of the onyx-haired teen's words, Szayel allowed his smile to widen; somehow, Luppi and Grimmjaw were alike in more ways than one… "Thanks," the genius responded.

Lilac eyes gazed at him for a second or two before turning towards the opposite wall; a grunt was given as the only reply.

A sudden burst of air coupled with muffled sounds from within the emergency room behind them brought the two teens' attention up a notch. A minute or so later, the doors were pulled open and a number of nurses and doctors filed out of the room; all of them were clothed in the sickly color of white with rubber gloves on their hands and masks covering their faces from the bridge of their nose and below. Both students rose up from their seats, their anxiety from before seemed to double as the medical people passed them by with an unreadable look in their eyes.

"E-Excuse me, what happened?" Szayel immediately went to question a nurse that was passing by them, unable to stop the fearfulness in his voice.

"Are you a relative sir?" The nurse asked as jade green eyes looked up at him in query.

"I'm a friend, and I'm also the one who came with him here. Luppi here," he indicated the effeminate youth with a slightly shaking hand "is his cousin. _Please_ tell us what happened to him…"

"I understand." The hospital staff nodded as he removed his facemask to communicate better. "Well sirs…"

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**A/N:** This has got to be the chap with the most scene changes that I've ever done… :P Not exactly a good cliffy, I know… And yes, Szayel has a lot of screen time in this one, basically since he's my current fave character in Bleach… ;D Gotta love the mad scientists…

On a more important note, I've made a start on the tenth chapter and from the way my plotline goes, this fic's ending will not 'fit' in one chapter... Maybe... five more? I'm just guessing here.. So, erm... I kinda need the German numbers from 11th to 15th, just to be sure.. chibi nazumi and Szayel-Chan, I'm on my virtual knees here, once again begging for your indulgence... :D

I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who'd alerted/faved/(and most specially)reviewed this story.. Every little fanfiction message that I receive in my mail is great inspiration. So thank you very much. Cheers!


	10. Zehnten Kapitel

Various sounds of machineries and voices filled the thick air. Tension was clearly present within the confines of the fairly large room.

The grinding of the gears in some apparatus became imminent.

"Doctor, the patient is unresponsive…"

_Beeeeeep!_ Insistent beeping sounds reverberated in the room.

"Quick! Start up the machine…"

A persistent melody of metal against metal came from all around him.

"What are the readings?"

Panic… that alone seemed to be present in all the voices that he could hear.

"It's close to critical. We need to do something, fast!"

Shuffling feet moved ceaselessly around him and then all sounds faded.

But still… everything was dark…

How long has it been, since he'd last seen his surroundings? How long has he been stuck within the darkness? This blanket of darkness that surrounded him… This emptiness that felt like it had no end to it…

It had been such a long time… It felt like months… years… decades… but no; in fact, it has barely been a week. A week since he was brought to that room. Six days since he'd been let out and kept in a relatively silent new room. Five since he was declared to be in coma. He knew it all; he knew it all well. He saw everything with his own two eyes. Disturbing as it was for him to see his own physical body lying motionless, he wasn't shocked in the least; it was as though he was already half-expected himself to be in that situation.

How long can he keep up this chore of staying alive? He was tired… too tired… He'd been waiting for years on end to finally end this life of his that became nothing more than a tedious chore for him ever since… ever since a most precious thing was taken away from him… _his_ most precious possession… Everything about him stopped back then, including time itself… He closed himself from everybody else's perception… He shunned everything else from himself… They could never understand him… Not in the way he wanted… not in the way _he_ did…

And then there was that fateful day… That day not too far behind… Where his time began to move once again…

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It was late in the afternoon, the golden rays of the sun passed through the windows of his hotel room. The room was spacious, the furniture in there were all classy, everything fitting in to the color scheme of a deep royal blue. A single bed occupied the most space, upon it laid a small leather briefcase, and not too far form this was an open booklet.

A melodious tone was sweeping around the four walls, a melancholic feel emitted by the musician and his song. Slowly, the harmony came to a halt and pale eyelids fluttered open. The metallic wind instrument was lowered from slightly parted lips, cool green eyes settled on the flute. Another day… still the same routine…

"Ulquiorra? Are you ready?" came a female's voice from behind him.

"Yes," the pale teen replied as he stood up, replacing his instrument back in its case, stuffing the booklet along with it. "…Mother."

A beaming woman faced him, raven-black eyes crinkled with delight. She wore a baby blue gown that fell at her knees, her wavy blonde hair curling down her back. Her gloved hands clutched at purse that glimmered when light came upon its surface. "Your father wishes to tell you of his regret that his business meeting coincided with your recital."

"It's alright, I understand that father is a busy man," was the green-eyed teen's reply as the two of them left the hotel room, his tone very well concealing the bitterness that he held within him.

It had been a long drive to the opera house, by the time their limousine stopped in front of it, the sky has already gone dark and stars filled up the deep blue canvas.

The woman left him backstage, where all the other performers were, before heading to the front rows where seats had been reserved for VIPs such as herself. As he looked around him, he could see many anxious faces and only a couple of other teens gave off a confident air. He could feel many eyes on him, which was nothing new. After all, being his father's only son and being 'gifted', as many writers had put it, with 'such surreal talents' often brought him into the spotlight much more than he would've wanted personally. But with the circumstances, he got used to it and resolved to pretty much keeping up his stoic front.

A booming voice resounded and all of the teens knew that it was show time.

The recital was nothing different from the others. Many people from high-class families, government positions and well-known individuals came to witness it. Each musician played his piece well and it was deep into the night when the show finally concluded.

"You gave such a wonderful performance, Ulquiorra." The blonde woman commented once they were back in the limousine. "Even the chancellor of that prestigious music school who was sitting beside me complimented your exemplary skills."

"I always give my best at everything, Mother." Ulquiorra responded with indifference, an inerasable bitter taste on his tongue. He'd long ago swore that he could never call the blonde sitting beside him as his mother, but he realized that his father wasn't exactly thrilled with his disposition. And since he recalled what happened when he went against his father's bidding, the teen knew he had to learn his place… He couldn't let another incident happen like the one that happened to Grimmjaw. The ebony-haired teen caught himself, feeling his heart skip a beat when he thought of the other boy. It had been quite a while since he last thought of the cerulean-eyed boy from his childhood. Speaking of which, how long has it been now? A decade, if not more, if he was counting right… Ulquiorra closed his eyes, willing the image of young Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques to appear in his vision. The slicked-up ice-blue hair, cerulean eyes that seemed to be always ablaze, sun-kissed skin, and a wide inviting smile… A gripping sensation enveloped his heart… He missed him… He missed Grimmjaw so much that it hurts… He had never seen Grimmjaw again ever since he got hit and run by the very same limousine that the musician was in right now… It was cruel. So cruel that he'd learned to live his everyday life without him… He lived, yes, but there was always a part of him missing… He could never forgive himself for having brought such hazard to his friend… He still blamed himself for not having enough strength back then… If he had, he would've definitely protected the boy… but he didn't, he couldn't…

Then there was a loud blaring noise.

Eyes snapped open and he was blinded by streams of white and orange light coming from the left, despite the fact that his mother's shadow was over him.

A deafening noise.

Glaring bright lights.

And then,

Silence.

The next thing he knew, he was in some whitewashed desert… Fine sand was blowing all around him and then there was another figure… appearing to have risen from the sands. He felt an unusual feeling… a feeling that crept its way all over his body… familiarity? Ulquiorra felt his throat run dry when the figure became clear to him… Ice-blue hair and tanned and muscled skin that stood out from the gray monochrome… It couldn't be, it was impossible, but it was there. _He_ was there…

"You… What are you… doing here?" the call had escaped him even before he could stop it. He didn't know why he bothered to say anything given that he was possibly meters away from the image of Grimmjaw in this too-white desert.

However, his logic was proven wrong as his only other companion turned around and around as though looking for somebody… Grimmjaw couldn't be looking for him right?

"Who the fuck is there? Show yourself!"

The muscular teen's voice was rough; a decided glare was on his well-chiseled features as his cerulean eyes darted here and there.

He had already taken a step towards the other when Ulquiorra managed to stop himself. He shouldn't. He mustn't. But he wanted to… It was then that some twisted form of gravity pulled at the pale teen, dragging him nearer to his fellow teenager. Clouds of disturbed sand flew about him and in a blink of an eye, the ebony-haired teen was barely a few feet in front of his childhood friend. Cerulean eyes landed on him and he felt his heart stop beating.

"You are…" Ulquiorra's lips moved and he was surprised to hear his voice sound ethereal. Is this really Grimmjaw? H-He survived that accident after all… Still, the green-eyed teen couldn't shake off the feeling of dread, which was only intensified by the look the he received from the taller teen.

The frown on chapped lips widened, and a dubious look filled the cerulean orbs. "Who are you?"

Ulquiorra could almost hear some unknown ceramic object breaking into a million pieces inside his ears. Grimmjaw had… forgotten him. How? How could he forget? Didn't he mean anything to the guy? Just because he was unable to preclude their family limo from hitting Grimmjaw before… Limo… hitting… Grimmjaw. Could it be? It would certainly explain why Grimmjaw didn't seem to recognize him now. Amnesia. It could be the only explanation. "I see…" he muttered to himself, dwelling in the disappointment that he'd never seen coming at him.

"What?" the taller teen asked, eyeing him curiously.

"Nothing…" he replied, finding it difficult to contain his emotions now that the most important person in his life appeared to have completely forgotten him. He couldn't do it anymore, he couldn't face Grimmjaw now that the teen didn't even acknowledge him. Ulquiorra bowed his head, succumbing to his defeat. He felt the wind pick up around him and in a flash he found himself looming over his own seemingly lifeless body, scathed and bloodied, lying on the operating table with numerous doctors attending to it.

He instantly went beside his corporal body, realizing that he was now but a spirit of some sort. He stretched his right hand, finding it had become translucent, and tried to touch his body's form but he found it quite impossible. An unknown invisible barrier seemed to keep him away from it. Still, he stayed there, unseen to everyone, and watched over the entire operation.

Was he afraid?

He couldn't tell for sure. What Ulquiorra had felt back then was something bordering on willingness to just die and not wanting to give in to death. Grimmjaw is alive. That sole fact kept his will to live strong. 'Grimmjaw is alive' he told himself fiercely, 'that is all that matters.' He wouldn't mind not having his friend remember him, so as long that he could see the guy living, breathing, smiling… everything was alright. So he stayed, feeling quite relieved when his physical body managed to survive the operation… even if he had been declared to be in comatose.

Comatose was okay. He still had a chance of getting back to his body. Ulquiorra spent hours thinking of what might be the reason that he was unable to return to his corporal self. He was honestly thoroughly willing to, and yet his own body seemed to reject him… Why?

A day after the operation, he witnessed his father entering the room, a collected expression on the man's face. Not a shred of remorse or worry could be seen on the brunet's features. A female nurse followed after the man, anxiety clearly painted on her youthful mien.

"I'm sorry, sir, I understand that you grieve for the loss of your wife but we cannot give you our word that your son will survive-" the stuttering voice of the head nurse filled the almost empty hospital room.

"Repeat?" a strikingly calm and cool tone cut the first one's statement; an underlying tone of irritation molded into the voice.

"I-I… Sir, you must understand that your son's case is grave and even if our doctors had given it their best, like they always do, we still cannot assure you that the operation would be successful."

"This hospital's credibility isn't at all up to par, it seems…" a rather delighted voice echoed.

"Sir!" an indignant feminine tone came, "Our staff are nothing below the standards, it's not-"

"I'm sorry, but if you cannot give me anything less than perfect, I'm afraid that may cause certain problems… Am I making myself, clear?" brown eyes bore into a deep green pair.

"Yes, s-sir." A forced calm tone replied.

"Good."

The only other witness to the conversation kept his silence. Ulquiorra remained standing at a corner of the room, invisible to the eyes of the two visitors that he'd received. He watched mutely as his father stood by his bedside, brown eyes staring into his seemingly lifeless form.

"I'll be expecting you to recover, Ulquiorra…" the man spoke coolly, eyes on the before heading out of the room leaving the pale teen lying on the pure white hospital bed. The head nurse cast one last worrying look at the patient before heading after the man; she was shivering, a cold and dismal air seemed to be surrounding the whole room. And yet, the young woman couldn't shake off the feeling that the room's sole occupant was just waiting… waiting for someone…

The room was filled with silence once more. Green eyes gazed upon the body that almost blended in with the stark white pillows and bed sheets, the cream-hued hospital gown appearing to be the only thing to distinguish his body from the bed. His inhumanely pale skin had closed and scabbed wounds all over, most of them located on his arms. A large gauze patch was taped to his left cheek, and other than that no other serious cut was on his expressionless face. An I.V. dripping clear water-like liquid was injected on his left forearm, which was banded to a straight board to keep it stable. An oxygen tank was on the other side of the bed, providing his comatose body with air through a mask that was strapped in place directly in front of his mouth, breathing tubes placed just inside his nostrils. Another wider machine was situated next to the tall oxygen tank, a wide screen on its surface showed a moving line graph.

His body certainly looked to be a hopeless case. His father's reaction wasn't quite unexpected… somehow, he'd already perceived that the man he called his father wouldn't even shed a tear for him… not that he expected him to. The blonde woman was deceased; another realization for him, another realization that didn't quite hold much meaning to him.

Unconsciously, his thoughts strayed towards a certain teen. 'Grimmjaw…' his lips mouthed the name. Was that cerulean-eyed teen the reason that he was unable to return to his body? It couldn't be so and yet he felt quite an unusual mixture of emotions filling up his veins whenever he thought of him.

His pale jaw dropped open as a sudden thought filled his confused mind. If Grimmjaw had amnesia… it could be that the guy had never forgiven him… Trepidation erupted from the deepest parts of his being… If Grimmjaw could only remember, then the teen would surely hate him now… He felt his insides churn… but… Grimmjaw wouldn't hate him… He wouldn't…

Befuddlement. That was the sole thing that occupied the musician's mind. Would Grimmjaw hate him if his memory were returned? For days on end, Ulquiorra stayed in his pensive mood until the time came that he decided that sitting there in the hospital wouldn't do him any good. The ebony-haired teen left his physical body and began to wander out. Going anywhere and everywhere that he assumed to be Grimmjaw's location.

His so far fruitless search left him exhausted, finding himself inside a vaguely familiar forest clearing, the musician allowed himself to rest there for a while. Eventually, Ulquiorra found that he missed his instrument. Not a second later, the teen was startled to find quite an exact replica of his flute lying on the grass a few feet from him. Curious as he was, Ulquiorra picked up the instrument. Just as he raised the metal flute to his lips, a flash of gold caught his eyes. Turning about, the green-eyed teen walked towards the source of the golden glow and found a field of orange-hued poppies just outside the dense grove of trees where he'd been before.

Poppies… a symbol for beauty, consolation, and eternal life… How interesting, the pale teen thought to himself as he ventured into the field of orange hues, a soft breeze lightly caressing his features, stopping when he was completely surrounded by the golden-orange flowers. Once again he raised his flute to his lips, he closed his eyes and began to play a piece… It was random but it calmed his nerves. A beautiful melody reached his ears and he found himself content for the moment. It was a lonely tune but he liked it nonetheless.

The wind blew softer and softer until he could no longer feel it, but Ulquiorra paid that no heed and continued playing the song that he'd memorized since childhood. The song that he'd been playing when Grimmjaw had first came up to see him… It had instantly become his favorite piece back then. The sound of grass crunching under heavy feet reached his ears but he knew he must be just imagining things and so he kept playing.

"U-Ulquiorra…" a choked voice called from behind him; a strikingly familiar voice.

At the call of his name, the musician abruptly halted playing. It couldn't be, and yet every fiber of his being wished that it was so. He slowly turned around, fighting hard to keep his face impassive when he found Grimmjaw making a beeline towards his location.

The muscled teen stopped right in front of him, staring at him with eyes that were clouded with disbelief and confusion. "Ulquiorra…"

Grimmjaw called out his name again and the pale teen felt shock course throughout his body. A tingling sensation filled his veins. His self-control was put to the test as he internally calmed himself before posing up the question that plagued his mind ever since the cerulean-eyed teen appeared before him.

"Y-You recall…" Ulquiorra asked in the most controlled voice that he could muster. He felt his heart racing in his chest; this wasn't right in a way that he couldn't quite grasp.

"Yeah, I remember… a bit of it… Actually, I've only started to remember you when you appeared to me first…" Grimmjaw's sentence trailed off as their eyes locked.

"…I see…" was the sullen statement that came out of his pale lips. So Grimmjaw had amnesia after all, and it was his fault… His right hand clutched his flute tighter. But what was Grimmjaw doing here? He knew that he was already near death but Grimmjaw? The guy shouldn't even be here! "You must leave now…" he informed the taller teen.

The ice-blue haired teen, however, seemed to take it as an insult. "It took me a freaking long time to find you and you're just sending me away like this? I don't think so, you little bastard. I've got a hell lot of questions for you and I'm not leaving wherever the fuck this is until I get some goddamn answers. Got it?"

"You don't understand, you must leave this place immediately," was Ulquiorra's reply in a dead serious tone. "Prolonging your stay here could-"

"I don't give a shit, okay?" Grimmjaw snapped at him, grabbing the green-eyed teen by the shoulders and shaking him roughly. "You suddenly come into my life, appear in every freaking dream I have, fuck up my life, and now you're asking me to just leave when you don't want to bother your pretty little self with me. Think again, bitch, coz there's nothin' you can do to make me leave."

"…You're as stubborn as ever…" the musician commented calmly despite the constricting feeling suddenly enveloped his chest… a strangely wonderful feeling that he hadn't felt for years…

The muscled teen let go of him with a huff and crossed his arms indignantly

"Fine, I shall answer any queries that you wish to know… but you must take haste, forget not that this place is not for you to stay in." The pale teen surprised even himself that he was concealing his emotions to Grimmjaw now, despite being much too open with the guy in the past. He cast his eyes up at the taller teen, feeling much afraid to expose himself to the other; a feeling of insecurity surrounding him.

"Fuck…" Grimmjaw breathed out, a great sigh escaping after. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

It took all of Ulquiorra's willpower not to gasp when the tanned teen placed his hand on top of his head. It brought back all those sensations that he'd held back for so long as he quietly relished the familiar gesture. He closed his eyes, allowed his expression to soften as memories of the past came flooding into his vision. And then without any warning, he felt Grimmjaw's hands combing through his hair, making his breath hitch unnoticeably especially when those warm tanned hands settled upon his hair once again. This was truly one memory that he would forever remember.

"…What happened to you…?" Grimmjaw's low voice filled his ears.

Did he just hear concern in that tone? Ulquiorra slowly opened his eyes, instantly meeting with a cerulean pair, softly calling out the name that he so wanted to speak for so long. "Grimmjaw…"

The muscular teen straightened up and broke their eye contact, opting to look at the orange-hued field that surrounded them. "Tell me… What happened… to us?"

That was the sole statement that had effectively crushed Ulquiorra's prepared defenses. This was it… Grimmjaw would find out… but then again maybe it wasn't so bad… He knew he didn't have a choice if he truly wanted to find peace… To finish his unfinished business…

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He had thought that showing Grimmjaw everything would solve his problem. Letting Grimmjaw witness for himself what had happened between them in the past was supposed to bring out the teen's hidden anger on him but no… Grimmjaw didn't hate him. Realizing this filled Ulquiorra with a newfound confusion… Now what? But even before he could delve deeper into his predicament, he was painfully reminded of one thing: Grimmjaw was still alive; he wasn't supposed to stay long in his dimension. Although parting with the teen was quite hard, Ulquiorra now knew that he had a reason to go back in his physical body… But he must do it quick, he'd been far away from it for days now, he had no idea of his corporal self's condition.

He whisked past nameless and unidentifiable scenarios. An adrenaline rush coursing in his blood until he finally reached his hospital room. Everything looked to be the same as always, nothing appeared to have been moved. He moved to one side of his bed, staring down at his bedridden body. Even in comatose, his expression showed none but impassivity.

It was time.

His translucent hand reached out to touch his corporal self's forehead. Closing his eyes, Ulquiorra willed for his return to his physical body. He felt a cool glass-like barrier under his touch, pressing his hand against it, the musician slowly felt himself tip in. A weightless feeling overcoming him… Darkness surrounded him once more… He knew he was in his body again… He tried to move his body… Tried to move his hands… Tried his fingers… nothing… An imposing feeling of imprisonment enveloped him. Ulquiorra found that he couldn't move, like a cage had close in on him rendering him immobile.

'What…?'

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**A/N: **To anyone who's been wondering WTH happened to Ulqui-boy, well this chapter here's my explanation.. Yesss its damn sappy… urgh… Not much on Grimmy here, I know...

What happened to Grimmy? I plan to put it in the next chap… As per usual, the more reviews, the faster I can work on it…

Cheers!


	11. Elften Kapitel

"Are you a relative sir?" The nurse asked as jade green eyes looked up at Szayel Aporro in query.

"I'm a friend, and I'm also the one who came with him here. Luppi," he indicated the effeminate youth with a slightly shaking hand, "is his cousin. _Please_ tell us what happened to Grimmjaw…"

"I understand." The hospital staff nodded as he removed his facemask to communicate better. "Well its good news, sirs. The patient managed to recover, even if he was almost at critical condition at first. Mr. Jeagerjacques is to be confined though, for another day or so, just to be sure that he's truly safe."

"H-He's… alright…?" Szayel could hardly believe it.

"Yes sir," the nurse beamed, "as of now, the patient is being transferred to room 306. The two of you may have to wait for a bit though, the doctors are securing his stability before allowing any visitors."

"Alright, alright, we get it. Safety precaution and whatever." Luppi drawled, "But can ya just tell us where the fucking room is?"

Seeming to take no offense at the teen's words, the nurse nodded and began to lead the two past the pearl-white walls of the hospital.

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Luppi tapped his foot impatiently on the whitewashed floors of the hospital hallway; Szayel was a few feet from his left, leaning against the monochrome walls, relief now replaced the mien of apprehension on both teens' features.

They were situated just opposite the door that the nurse had pointed out to be Grimmjaw's room, the door had no windows to see who was inside but they had been informed beforehand that a couple of doctors were in it. The only thing identifying the patient within was a small name placard set onto the door, and it stated: 'G. Jeagerjacques'.

The onyx-haired teen checked the watch strapped on his left wrist; it read 5:45 pm. Great, it was already turning night. Just as Luppi was about to curse the stupid health staff into hell for taking so goddamn long, the pristine white door opened. Szayel had almost jumped off from the wall to reach the doctors that came out but his companion beat him to it.

"Hey doctor, what happened to him? Your nurse won't say a goddamn thing." Luppi demanded, lilac eyes staring up at the taller man in a white lab coat.

The white-haired man blinked, obviously not used to being talked to in such a fashion, nonetheless, he replied in a tone of understanding. "I presume that you're a friend of Mr. Jeagerjacques. Well, during the operation, it has been concluded that the patient was under cardiac arrest. We did our best and thankfully, Mr. Jeagerjacques has been able to recover. He is still in sleep and we expect him to wake up tomorrow morning. We shall allow you two to stay with him, if you wish, but I'd advise you not to make much noise within the confined room. Understood?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you very much." Szayel bowed shortly to show his thanks.

Nodding, the doctor bade them goodbye and left.

Luppi automatically grabbed the doorknob and pushed the door open, allowing Szayel to go in first before shutting the door behind him. Lilac eyes quickly scanned the room. Grimmjaw was tucked inside a hospital bed in the center of the room and thankfully, other than the apparatus that monitored the teen's breathing, no other machine nor I.V. was attached to his body. A three-drawer cabinet was located just beside Grimmjaw's hospital bed; on the wall to the left of the bed was a couch which was presumably for visitors; a round wall clock was hung above it, showing that time that was two minutes to six o'clock. On the opposite wall was a door that probably led to the bathroom and once he'd stepped into the room, Luppi noticed that a small TV was set up on the corner.

"Dammit, Grimmy, what happened to ya? Having cardiac arrest and shit…" Luppi mumbled as he stood by the patient's bed.

Szayel was on the other side, golden eyes carefully reading the figures that were shown on the machine that was the sole apparatus connected to the slumbering teen.

"Thank god…"

It was a barely audible whisper, but in the dead silence of the room, Luppi caught on to it quickly. He gazed at the genius from the corner of his eyes; Szayel was staring at Grimmjaw now, both his hands grasping the metal rails that lined the edges of the hospital bed, the golden eyes beneath his glasses looked at none but the patient in-between them. The effeminate youth could very much tell that his companion was close enough to crying, it wasn't hard to guess seeing the younger Granz' eyes glazed over with liquid and the fact that the guy was biting his lips as though it was the only thing that he could do not to cry.

'…Lucky bastard…' the onyx-haired teen found himself thinking as his eyes locked onto his cousin's form.

The ice blue-haired teen laid there, eyes closed, brows slightly knitted together, and a frown on his lips, looking very much like he'd undergone some serious fighting. Well, he most probably had… Cardiac arrest wasn't a joke. The effeminate teen noted that Grimmjaw's clothes had changed; his black t-shirt, white jacket and denim pants from before were now replaced with the sage green hospital gown. Inclining his head to his left, Luppi deduced that the pile of clothes placed at one corner of the couch must be his cousin's.

"…rrrgghh… no…"

Two pairs of eyes widened. Luppi's gaze immediately snapped back to Grimmjaw, finding with much shock that the teen's expression has drastically changed. From his rather calm expression before, the muscled teen now appeared to be in great distress; his pale brows were crossed, eyes shut tight, his canine-like teeth exposed.

"Grimmjaw…" awe and shock made up the tone of Szayel's voice. He was literally frozen on his spot as he watched the bedridden teen twitch and speak as though in anguish.

"… d-don't… argh… da-amn… u… ul…" disjointed words came out from the tanned teen's parted lips, the rise and fall of his chest quickening.

"Grimmjaw?" Luppi found himself calling out, his heartbeat's pace going up again. Dammit, what was this? An aftershock?! Those fucking medics said Grimmjaw's going to be okay!

Creases formed on the too-white bed sheets as calloused hands grasped them too tightly. They could see the teen's teeth grind as a pained look came over Grimmjaw's features.

"Ulqui- no…" Grimmjaw's breathing broke down into panting as beads of sweat formed on his boyish face.

Should they call a nurse? A doctor? They can't just leave him there. Panic rose up as the machine beside Grimmjaw's bed began to beep, its small lights blinking red. Luppi already had half a mind to run out and call for help when…

"ULQUIORRA!"

With a shout, the patient was sitting up, eyes and mouth wide open. Grimmjaw was breathing raggedly, as if he'd just come out of some marathon. Cerulean eyes dilated when he realized that his surroundings had changed; a distinguishable odor of disinfectant reached his nose and he quickly looked around, panic showing in his expression. It was then that he recognized the two teens that stood on either side of his bed… bed? When the fuck did…?

"Y-You're… Grimmjaw, you're awake…"

Hearing the statement, the teen's eyes fixed upon the teen on his right… Szayel… He very much wanted to ask a hell load of things but found himself rather out-of-breath. Taking time to calm his nerves, Grimmjaw turned to look around and found Luppi on his other side. Just the two of them? Where were the others? And where the hell was this place?

"Hey, Grimmy." His cousin called, and Grimmjaw faced the teen with a glare, he hated that nickname.

Reprieve was visibly seen on the youthful teen, seeing Grimmjaw wake up and act like he used to was enough to pacify his nerves.

"Ya feelin' alright now?" Luppi queried as he planted both hands on his hips. "Care to explain what the fuck happened to ya? You bastard gave all of us quite a scare…"

Instead of answering his cousin's inquiry, Grimmjaw rounded on the other teen present.

"Where the hell's this joint? Why are we in here?" the ice blue-haired teen asked one after the other, his eyes then landed on himself. "And what the fuck happened to me?!"

Szayel's hand clutched at his chest, the expression on his flawless face showed a mixture of relief and wanting to cry. "You're awake… You're alright…" the bespectacled teen muttered in bated breath.

"Yes, I'm fucking alright, now answer my goddamn questions!" Grimmjaw demanded, eyes shifting from one teen to another.

"You had cardiac arrest, you dumbass." Luppi stated factually, crossing his arms, a glare settling on his effeminate features. "You almost gave all of us a heart attack and because of your stupid episode, Shawlong got hypertension. Ichigo drove us all the way here, to this stupid hospital to have some medics check up on you since everyone was pretty much shitting in their pants in worry. Szayel and I had to stay whilst everybody else went back to the dorms since that Chinese needed rest. You practically scared him half to his death; did you know that, jackass?"

The patient appeared to be immobilized as he stared in utter confusion at his cousin. Cardiac what-the-fuck? Everything was messed up… The muscled teen rested his elbow on his lap and cradled his head with his right hand, his palm covering his closed eyes. Shit. He felt groggy. Hospital… Urgh, he hated these types of places, they fucking smelled of death.

"Grimmjaw do you feel queasy?" Szayel's concerned voice filled his ears. "Should I call for a nurse?"

"No… Urgh, how long had I been asleep?" the teen questioned grunted out.

"Approximately four hours. Are you sure you don't need-"

"I said no, you fruitcake, so shut it!" the cerulean-eyed teen growled, his fingers rubbing at his temples.

The dorm's genius bit back his supposed statement, pursing his lips, eyes cast down, his hands (which had finally let go of the bed's railings) now laid atop each other in front of his body.

Luppi, from his side, kept back a growl; Grimmjaw was a fucking bastard, he knew that well but damn, his cousin didn't have to bitch like that; Szayel was only being concerned. Feeling eyes boring into him, the youthful teen looked up to find Szayel gazing at him rather imploringly, conveying without words the message of 'Please convince him to get some rest, Luppi, who knows what could happen to him…'.

Sighing exaggeratedly and scratching the back of his head, Luppi spoke. "Oi, Grimmy. I think you should rest for a bit, I mean, you just got out of some deep shit… I don't think it'll do you some good if you immediately start moving about…"

Grimmjaw cracked open one eye and gave his onyx-haired cousin a look that quite plainly stated 'what the fuck are you saying?'. "I think four fucking hours of fucking rest is enough for me," he stated quite sarcastically. "And I ain't goddamned sick, so stop whining like shit."

Damn it, why was everything so confusing? He remembered going to the stupid picnic-slash-Welcome Party for Luppi; he recalled that the guys had a game of Frisbee, he sat that one out since he wanted to rest for a bit… and then… then… Damn, it felt like his head was about to explode… Grimmjaw shut his eyes tightly as fuzzy images crept into his vision… Flashes of colors… Black… Gray… White… Then sceneries flew by… An open ocean… Shelves of books… A driveway… A sleek white limo… Pools of green… Cool green… Eyes? Framed with uneven ebony locks… A pale face… A cold hand… A far-off voice calling him… A calming voice… Enthralling… Soft lips rested on his cheek…

_"Thank you and goodbye… Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques."_

Eyelids flew open and cerulean irises grew wide. "Ulquiorra," the teen gasped out, a renewed sense of fear overwhelming him. He had to go… He had to… The muscled body made to get off but a lean hand closed in on his forearm, blue-hued eyes traveled up and met with gold.

"Where do you think you're going?" came the fretful query from the pink-haired teen. "You're not yet well enough to be up."

"I have to go!" Grimmjaw barked back, insistently pulling his arm away.

"You just got out of an operation!"

"I need to, goddammit! Just let me leave, Szayel, I have to-"

"Go find Ulquiorra?" Luppi cut in, a fine black eyebrow raised as his cousin's attention went to him; a perplexed look settled upon the well-chiseled boyish face.

"How did I know?" the lilac-eyed youth stated the muscled teen's unspoken question. "Grimmy you've been saying that name like some damned mantra. Hell, you even woke up screaming his name… What _the_ **fuck**?"

"Y-you… Do you know him?! Do you?!" Cerulean eyes bored into the effeminate teen. Grimmjaw basically ignored Szayel as his focus now was on getting answers from his cousin; the appalling fact that he knew nothing about Ulquiorra at this point in time smacked him hard in the face. Damn, he was fucking clueless. He did not know Ulquiorra's location; he had no idea of the guy's exact situation; none, nothing, nada. Damn it, he couldn't do anything! "Answer me, Luppi!" the teen demanded in a threatening tone.

The youngest teen merely frowned. Grimmjaw was acting weird. "What is it to you anyway?" Luppi replied with a question. "You're fucking messed up, Grimmjaw. When you get enough rest, I'll tell you. Now lay back down."

"Luppi, you bitch, just tell me!" the slightest bit of desperation seeped into Grimmjaw's tone.

Lilac eyes creased in suspicion.

It appeared plainly to the muscular teen that the effeminate guy was not going to give in. 'The stupid prick.' Grimmjaw growled as he shot his cousin his most intimidating glare.

"Why are you getting so worked up about this, Grimmjaw?" Szayel inquired softly, quite afraid of having the cerulean-eyed teen lash out at him again. "There could be horrible side effects if you don't rest properly…"

"It's my body, I know what happens to it and I _know_ that I'm fucking alright now." Grimmjaw gritted out, giving his earnest in keeping his temper in check; having realized that it wouldn't do him any good to bring out his anger on Szayel. "Just trust me, alright? Right now, if you guys really want to help me, then help me get out of this fucked up place and find Ulquiorra."

"… You wouldn't change your mind no matter what I say," Szayel murmured mostly to himself, a small resigned smile on his lips.

"Damn straight." Grimmjaw pulled at the cords that were stuck to his chest, cords that were connected to the machine beside his hospital bed; with just a single pull, the teen had effectively freed himself.

Luppi on the other hand, merely sighed. "Well if you're fucking intent on stowing away, then at least change yer clothes. I'd be damned if I go out on the streets with you in that lame-ass hospital gown…" he stated, pointing at the pile of clothes set upon the couch just behind Szayel.

"Like I'd let such a stupid thing happen." Grimmjaw snorted as he got off the bed, walked over to where his clothes were and began changing right then and there.

Gold and lilac eyes profusely looked away.

"Szayel, you do know that we can't just leave this hospital without paying for stuff, right?" Luppi asked casually, eyes focused on the crease-filled hospital bed now that his cousin had gotten out of it.

"Yes, I am aware…" the prodigy replied, appearing to have great interest in his fingernails, holding them up close to his face as though surveying them. "Although, I believe that my brother has already thought up of a solution for that… Naturally, he's going to ask everyone in the dorm to pitch in to pay the hospital bill…"

"Yeah, but, you know, we can't exit this place without settling the fees… And, well, Il Forte isn't here right now…"

"I'll go ahead then, just meet me at the hospital's main entrance." The bespectacled genius spoke aloud this time as he moved out of the room.

"You bastards aren't tryin' to guilt trip me now, are ya?" Grimmjaw demanded as he finished putting on his jacket, the last piece of his clothing. The other teens' previous conversation was held with hushed tones, and he only caught wind of bits and pieces of it.

His cousin, however, merely ignored him and instead got out his cellphone and began dialing a number.

"Yo, Il Forte. Yeah, it's me… Don't worry, Grimmy's alright. In fact, he's already up right now… No, I'm not kidding; do you honestly think I'd joke about shit like that? … Well, anyway, listen, we're checking him out from this hospital… Yes, we're sure he's already good enough to go… Of course we're bringing him back to the dorms! … Uh-huh, alright… Sure, bye."

"What the fuck was that about?" Cerulean irises narrowed in suspicion.

"I just told Il Forte, who'd probably tell everyone else, that you're safe. We don't want them to continue worrying their heads off, now do we?" Luppi retorted sardonically. Grimmjaw only glared at him. "Well, let's go. Szayel's probably done now…"

"Done?"

"Just follow me…"

"And what were you saying that we'd head back to the dorms?! I thought you were gonna tell me where Ulquiorra is?!"

"I said follow, dumbfuck."

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**A/N:** What next? Surprise, surprise... ;D

BTW, I just realized that the reviews for this have flown by the number 60 and I didn't even give a proper thank you.. So here it is.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE REVIEWS/ALERTS/FAVES/and even C2s! I feel very much loved and inspired to continue writing because of the encouragement brought to me by every review/alert/fave/C2... I have three ongoing GrimmUlqui stories right now, and I want to take this opportunity to thank all those who've passed by to read Catwalk and Stray as well. Sixty plus (and now it's almost seventy!) is a great big number and it's a huge achievement for me... I can't tell you people exactly how awesome you guys are...

Bows down. I owe you all.


	12. Zwölften Kapitel

The effeminate teen led him out of his hospital room, down the sickening white hallways until they reached the lobby. There, the pink haired genius awaited them with a small smile on his features.

"Let's get going, shall we?" the golden-eyed teen invited as he began to walk out of the hospital.

Cerulean eyes looked around, quite unnerved that no one tried to stop his exit as he'd expected. Straight out, the three of them walked, not a word was exchanged in between them. A chilling night breeze swept through the trio as they continued to head away from the medical institution. They boarded a taxicab and the driver sped off, stopping when they reached another tall white infrastructure.

When they got out of the vehicle, Grimmjaw finally had enough; he grabbed his cousin by the shoulders and forced the younger teen to face him. "Enough, wiseass. What the fuck is this? You got me out of that shitty hospital only to take me to another one?"

"Where else do you think that fucked up celebrity would be?" the lilac-eyed teen retorted.

"Ulquiorra's… in there…?" Grimmjaw eyed the establishment in suspicion. "What the hell would he be doing in there?"

"Don't you watch the news, Grimmjaw?" Szayel asks, pushing up his glasses. "He'd been the whole content of it for a week now… Especially since he got into that car crash just after he had a huge performance…"

"Are you sure we're talking about the same guy here?" Grimmjaw didn't want to believe it.

"There's only one Ulquiorra in this area." The genius replied. "You're going on about that famous musician, correct?"

The ice-blue haired teen nodded uneasily. He'd always seen Ulquiorra playing a flute, so it would only make sense.

"Then there you go."

"What do you have against the guy anyway?" Luppi asked, raising an eyebrow. Honestly, at times, he just couldn't understand his blue-haired cousin. Grimmjaw was never the type to like opera music, so what did the guy have with the famous Ulquiorra? Sure, he knew the musician; who wouldn't? Having a celebrity for a mom and a congressman for a dad, the Schiffer kid practically had fame written all over him. Luppi, of course, hadn't met the ebony-haired teen personally but at least he knew the basics about the guy. But with Grimmjaw… Thin lips pursed… Why was it that the muscular teen suddenly had such interest with that Ulquiorra?

Grimmjaw's eyes turned to his cousin. How could he explain? Let's see… _'I've been having dreams involving Ulquiorra and my past, and whoop-de-doo, now I can't get him the fuck off my mind_.' Geez, that was a surefire way to get them think he's more of a lunatic than before. "I just hafta see him, alright?"

"But…" Szayel extended an arm and held Grimmjaw by his wrist, preventing the latter from venturing into the hospital. "And according to the news, Ulquiorra's currently in an Intensive Care Unit… he's not allowed any visitors unless it's a direct relative or so."

A wide frown settled on chapped lips. "I – don't – care." Grimmjaw spoke through gritted teeth, pronouncing each word with much emphasis. Ulquiorra's in I.C.U.?! Damn it. No wonder the guy looked like some living corpse. These realizations only brought one thing to his mind: he had to get to Ulquiorra, _fast_. "I'd get to Ulquiorra even if it's the last thing I do."

The bespectacled teen could only stand back and blink as his cerulean-eyed dorm mate stormed off after brusquely shaking off his hold on him. He spared Luppi a glance and found a weary look upon his other companion.

"…prick." Luppi muttered under his breath as he and Szayel followed Grimmjaw, who'd gone ahead into the private hospital. If there was one thing to hate about his cousin, it was the fact that Grimmjaw acted impulsively, no strategic planning whatsoever.

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"What the fuck do you mean we can't go see him?!"

Heads turned and the teen who gave the outburst received innumerable glares both from the hospital staff as well as the patrons of the institution. Said teenager was all but mindful of this.

"Grimmjaw, shut it!" Luppi ground out as he kept a firm hold on the aforementioned male's forearm.

He was, however, ignored, as Grimmjaw didn't relent his glare on the poor desk nurse that was catering to his previous queries. "Why can't ya allow me to fucking go and see Ulquiorra?! Get yer ass off that chair and get me to him, you lazy bitc-!"

"Enough, Grimmjaw." Szayel finally stepped in after having just stood on one side, frozen in shock at the taller man's profanity even at such an establishment like a hospital. His golden eyes bravely faced blazing ceruleans. Grimmjaw was never going to get to anything if he continued like this. To see Ulquiorra was what Grimmjaw wanted, and, he knew, to see Ulquiorra was the only thing that he'd get… it never mattered to his senior what method it took, as long as he got what he wanted. Szayel sighed and placed the best smile he could muster as he faced the now-petrified desk nurse.

"I'm sorry, about my friend's… _improper_ behavior…" Szayel choose his words carefully as he could feel a pair of blue eyes boring a hole in his back. "But you see, we really have to see Mr. Ulquiorra Schiffer. It's urgent."

The girl behind the counter appeared to conclude that Szayel won't scream at her unlike the first man and she replied in a conversional manner. "I'm really, really sorry sir, but we have all been strictly notified that no one is to see Mr. Schiffer. If you're his fans, we have been instructed to take all gifts directed at him; we are to temporarily keep them until Mr. Schiffer leaves the hospital premises and is well enough to receive them for himself. And even if I allowed you to see him, sir, Mr. Schiffer is still in comatose; he hasn't woken up since the operation. So I'm sad to say that it simply won't do."

Luppi stared in bewilderment as his previously struggling tanned cousin suddenly halted when the desk nurse informed them of Ulquiorra's condition.

Grimmjaw's immobility lasted for two seconds until he raised his voice once again. "COMATOSE?! Why didn't you fucking tell me earlier-!"

"Excuse me." A curt voice interjected and their attention was turned to the newcomer wearing a crisp white uniform with white stockings and shoes of the same color. Beside them now stood a girl with inky-black hair that was braided at her nape, straight-cut bangs ending just above her soft green eyes that looked at them unblinkingly, a grave air surrounding the female. "It has come to my attention that there has been a disturbance here… Is that correct?" The newcomer turned to the desk nurse, giving her a solemn look.

The desk nurse's baby blue eyes widened at the sight of her superior. "Madame!" she stood up to show her respect. "A-Actually, what happened was-"

"Nemu…? Is that you?"

Both nurses stopped and turned to Szayel, a flicker of recognition sparked in green eyes.

"Szayel Aporro…?" Head Nurse Nemu spoke as she went nearer, eyes trained on the pink-haired teen.

"Yes, yes… Oh how are you, Nemu?" The golden-eyed genius strode forward and gave the nurse a quick hug. "I never knew you worked here!"

"It's nice to see you again…" the head nurse replied, a smile gracing her once somber mien. "And, by chance, was it your group that caused the small commotion here a few minutes back?" Her eyes landed on the cousins that accompanied her acquaintance.

"Sadly, yes…" came Szayel's rather sheepish reply.

"Hmm…" soft jade eyes gazed from the bespectacled teen, his two companions, and finally, the desk nurse. Nemu blinked upon seeing that the girl was still standing and was looking at her rather expectantly. "You may sit down now. I will deal with them."

"Thank you, Madame." The blue-eyed nurse said as she took her seat.

"Follow me." the braided nurse directed as she walked away from the counter.

The cousins looked at the dorm's resident genius, Szayel merely shrugged before following the white-clad girl. Nemu led the three aside, heading into her nearby office and sitting behind her desk, motioning for the three to take the seats available. Szayel and Luppi sat side by side at the couch directly opposite the head nurse's desk; Grimmjaw, meanwhile, simply stood beside them, his face contorted in a frown, expertly giving off the vibe that this better be goddamn quick or else.

"Won't you take a seat, sir?" Nemu asked, looking up at the still standing muscular man.

A grunt was the only reply, followed by a crossing of arms.

Concluding that she would get no good answer from the man, Nemu turned to the pink-haired teen and his other companion. "Szayel, I must tell you that I am quite aghast that you allowed a friend of yours to create such a disturbance at a hospital like this," the braided nurse said solemnly. "Can you explain to me why it had been so?"

"Nemu, I'm sorry…" the golden-eyed teen replied. "It's just that Grimmjaw" he referred to his standing friend "badly wanted to see a patient that has been confined in this hospital… The problem was we'd been informed that apparently, that patient was not allowed to have any visitors. And… well… things just got a bit out of hand then…"

The nurse's thin black brows creased the slightest bit downwards. "And who may this 'patient' be?" she inquired.

Instead of Szayel's reply, the head nurse received one from another teen.

"Ulquiorra Schiffer." Grimmjaw spat as he directed a harsh glare at the nurse behind her desk. "I need to go see him, woman! Why can't you people fucking understand that?!"

"Why?"

That one word seemed to break off any self-restraint that Grimmjaw had upon himself as he launched himself, appearing ready to just strangle the head nurse until Luppi stood up to him.

"Can it, Grimm." The lilac-eyed teen warned. "You're not gonna get anything if you just force your way through everything. We're trying to have a decent conversation here to ask her to let you see that goddamned Schiffer… so just stand back and keep your fucking temper in check."

Luppi was never the intimidating type; in fact, Grimmjaw had never found a reason to label his younger cousin as 'intimidating'. Hearing the smaller teen reprimand him, however, just about raised his respect for the younger man… even if it was barely by an inch.

"It seems that you can control that man quite well." Nemu commented. "True, we have been given a direct order to ban all visitors from Mr. Schiffer's room."

"But, Nemu…" Szayel implored. "Can't you make one teensy bit of an exemption? Just for us? I promise it won't take us very long…"

"…" Soft green eyes gazed around the other occupants of her office, finally landing on the tall ice-blue haired teen. He wasn't glaring at her anymore, the muscled man was looking away from her, a concentrated scowl on him, arms having resumed a crossed position over his creased clothing. Cerulean eyes looked pointedly away, but in a most unexpected motion, Nemu found that she had locked gazes with the man. She pursed her lips as she was met with eyes that mutely expressed an unexplainable sort of longing and need. A sudden chill went down the had nurse's spine as she recalled the feeling… a dismal yearning… In a blink, their eye contact was gone.

Nurse Nemu stood up, a decision made up in her mind. She opened the right-hand drawer of her desk and took out a silver key, placing the object in her pocket, at the same time, taking hold of a clipboard that was sitting on her desk. It was a risk…

Realization dawned on her three guests as loose smiles broke on Szayel and Luppi's features, Grimmjaw merely looked appeased for the moment. The pink-haired teen gave his friend a word of thanks as Nemu led them out. They headed to the left wing of the private hospital, rode up four floors on the elevator, and walked towards the end of one creepily silent hall. The braided head nurse stopped in front of a door as white as the rest of the surroundings, she could feel the hitch of breath of the man behind her as the wide window on the door revealed to them the sole resident of the room.

The room itself appeared foreboding. Inside, there were no lighting whatsoever, either that or they just didn't turn them on because the interior was almost as dark as the night sky. The only thing that allowed them to recognize that there indeed was something inside was the poison-green light coming from the machine beside the patient's hospital bed. The green illumination showed them at least half of the patient's upper body. Pale and thin arms on either side of the blanket-covered body, resting blandly upon the white linen sheets, a head of long-ish ebony hair settled on the pillow above, and from their location, the man's expression was indistinguishable. Small blinking dim yellow lights and the reflection of metal told them that aside from the large box-like machine that emitted the eerie green glow, there were other mechanisms at work inside.

Szayel was quick to notice the clenched fist of his companion. 'It must've been a shock to him,' the genius mused silently. In all honesty, Szayel could say that he himself felt nothing less than distress at seeing someone in such a state, even if that someone was a complete stranger to him.

"Let me go to him." A low voice suddenly spoke, breaking the almost reverent silence between the four.

Golden eyes snapped up at the speaker. Grimmjaw, however, was not looking at him; rather, the muscular man was facing the head nurse, and it was her whom he'd addressed. The cerulean-eyed teen's words had his signature roughness and yet, Szayel couldn't help but think that there was more to it… That there was some underlying words that his senior had spoken… He didn't want to believe it but… it was there… He heard it.

_…please._

"You have been told twice that we are not permitted to let visitors have access to this room, correct?" Nemu spoke in her quiet voice.

Luppi readied himself, awaiting any move that Grimmjaw might attempt. He was quite taken aback, however, when instead of his expected reaction, the ice-blue haired teen merely bowed his head, eyes downcast.

"I…" Grimmjaw's low voice began.

"However…" Nemu's crisp voice interjected. "It just so happens that it's about time for my daily check-up on Mr. Schiffer…"

The muscled teen's head snapped up, a wild spark of hope swimming in his cerulean eyes; could it be…?

Nemu glanced at Szayel and smiled. The prodigy returned the gesture, feeling exhilaration filling him. Nemu had always been such a good friend, even when they were still neighbors during his childhood days.

Using the silver key, the green-eyed nurse unlocked the door and the small group was met with a burst of arctic air coming from the once enclosed room. Grimmjaw inhaled deeply, he could feel his heart racing; Ulquiorra was just in his reach now… The braided Nemu stepped aside, eyes not meeting his. Should he go in?

A chilling sensation pulsed in his veins, Grimmjaw gulped as he was finally able to force his seemingly frozen legs to move. The tanned teen took a tentative step forward. And another. And another. Soon enough, Grimmjaw found himself standing beside the lone hospital bed in the room. It was almost pitch black inside if it wasn't for the lights from the machineries… but it wasn't those apparatuses that caught his cerulean gaze. Grimmjaw had eyes for none but the occupant of the linen white sheets of the bed.

Uneven locks of ebony hair rested undisturbed on the pale musician's forehead. His eyes were closed, but even at this point in time, a severe formality could be seen on his mien. He could see thin red wirings slipping into the square collar of the green-lighted hospital dress that Ulquiorra wore and presumed that these small cables were attached to the monitoring device that lit up the room. An oxygen mask was strapped in place directly in front of his mouth, breathing tubes placed just inside the comatose teen's nostrils; these apparatuses only further proving the musician's frailty at the moment. Only the right side of Ulquiorra's face and upper body were lighted by the machines' glow, still, he could make out a couple of dried up gashes there, as well as a moderately sized suture on the pale teen's right forearm. The teen's left forearm, on the other hand, was strapped to a straight board with an I.V. injected to it.

Damn… Just damn.

Grimmjaw felt a shudder run through his body, a coldness that had nothing to do with the arctic room seemed to fill his whole being. He raised one calloused hand but stopped midway.

What the fuck was he thinking?!

Farther back, the teen's other three companions stood mutely at the open doorway, not one of them dared to enter.

"So this was what you meant, huh?" Grimmjaw's easily distinguishable voice reached the three.

Lilac, gold, and soft green eyes looked at each other in silent communication. It was clear to all three that the muscled teen was speaking to none but the unconscious patient inside the room.

"Just like before… you've been waiting for me…" Grimmjaw's voice dropped lower, his eyes never leaving the comatose patient. "… All this time, and I never knew…"

Szayel shifted closer to the head nurse and whispered his query. "Nemu… How has Mr. Schiffer been faring so far…" the prodigy asked with unease. Having the room opened to them gave him the unshakable feeling as if the man inside had been left… forgotten… isolated. It was as though someone had just made sure that no _one_ could reach out to the musician.

There was soft flipping of papers on the clipboard, then the braided nurse read from her notes. "His statistics are well." Nemu began in a voice not higher than a whisper. "Mr. Schiffer is on a steady way to recovery… however, I've noted that it's going at a rather slow pace…"

"But he'll get better…?" Luppi inquired, his eyes still glued on his cousin.

"We certainly hope so," came Nemu's short reply.

"You've said that he is in comatose, correct?" Szayel asked as he pushed up his glasses, a dark glint reflecting on the lenses. The genius had a small frown on his lips as though reconsidering. "Is it… possible, Nemu, that… he'd never wake up…?"

Lilac eyes of the effeminate youth in between them looked with a gleam of worry from one party to the other. Luppi felt his heart sink when the head nurse beside them looked detachedly at Grimmjaw who had his back to them.

"… yes."

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**A/N:** Ohoho, am I torturing them too much? –squirms- I don't mean to, my lovelies!! –bawls her eyes out-

. . .

Er, yeah, sadly, I have no control on what my fingers type.. Please do ignore the stupid A/N.

Thanks for keeping up with this fic! Review and tell me how evil I am… I am prepared with tons of GrimmUlqui plushies to throw back...

-looks over at Ulqui's hospital bed- _Look, I'm sorry_!! –teary-eyes-


	13. Dreizehnten Kapitel

"Is it… possible, Nemu, that… he'd never wake up…?"

The lilac eyes of the effeminate youth in between them looked with a gleam of worry from one party to the other. Luppi felt his heart sink when the head nurse beside them looked detachedly at Grimmjaw who had his back to them.

"… yes."

A cloud of gloom seemed to hover around their heads at Nemu's honest reply.

"Ulquiorra? Ulquiorra! SHIT! Nurse! YO NURSE! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE, QUICK!!" the loud, brash voice of one Grimmjaw Jeagerjacques broke the silence that hung around.

Footsteps suddenly resounded as three individuals bounded into the room in a rush.

"What happened?" Nemu's sharp demeanor seeped through, for the head nurse could easily tell that something was amiss.

"It's Ulquiorra…" the urgency was crystal clear in Grimmjaw's panicked voice. "He… He's not letting go of my hand…"

The quizzical looks on Szayel, Luppi and Nemu's faces were wiped off clean when the machine that emitted the ghostly-green glow started to make high-pitched beeping noises.

"Szayel, the lights please!" Nemu ordered as she rushed to decipher the readings on the machine's monitor.

It took the prodigy less than a minute to find the appropriate light switch, and when he did so, an almost blinding light filled the room. It was only then that Szayel had seen with his own eyes how neglected the area truly was. For aside from the hospital bed that the musician occupied, and the machines that were attached to his pale body, there was barely any other object within the unit.

"What did you do?!" Luppi hissed at his cousin, whom he now saw had a hand holding on to the supposedly comatose musician's right hand. A rather huge frown covered the onyx-haired teen's lips when he saw that, indeed, the small pale hand of the bedridden patient had quite a firm grasp on his cousin's calloused hand. A fine black brow rose into Luppi's hairline. What the hell was this?

"I don't know!" Grimmjaw's reply was in the tune of a growl. "I-I just wanted to see if he… if he was still alive… I took his hand a-and his hand just twitched and – damn, he's holding it too tightly!"

Grimmjaw's free hand gripped the unconscious Ulquiorra's right wrist as he put much effort in freeing his 'captured' hand. Luppi could only look confused and stand back, very much unsure of what to do.

"Nemu, what's happening to him?" Szayel inquired with bated breath, golden eyes glowing with concern as he took in the sight of Grimmjaw struggling to free himself as he stood beside the bed.

"His heart rate's increasing rapidly – Breathing is escalating as well…" Nemu murmured, eyes focused on the monitor in front of her, appearing to not have heard Szayel's previous inquiry.

A rasping sound suddenly joined in the noise of the machineries. Four pairs of wide eyes, swimming with disbelief, turned towards the occupant of the hospital bed. Hoarse pants and gasps that signaled difficulty in breathing emanated from partly opened pale lips. Dark brows constricted in the middle of an ivory forehead and the whole of the pale face was covered in sheens of sweat. The small chest of the confined patient heaved up and down in an eccentric pattern.

"Ulquiorra!"

Grimmjaw called in what sounded to be almost a scream. If before he'd been prying away his hand from the musician's grasp, now the cerulean-eyed teen was the one holding on to Ulquiorra. Tanned hands now had an equally firm grip on the smaller hand that lay in between them on the pristine linen sheets. A mixture of fear and confusion was splattered on Grimmjaw's boyish face, his teeth clenched as his mind swam with worries that he had no fucking clue on how to snuff out.

"Godammnit! What's going on?!" an almost helpless tone laced the ice-blue haired teen's words. His question went not only to the head nurse but to his dorm mates as well…

Szayel and Luppi felt a squirming anxiety fill up their veins as right before their eyes, the usually headstrong teen appeared to be losing himself. The pink-haired teen took a step forward, raised a hand to comfort his friend but as he opened his mouth to state his sympathy, it occurred to him that he had no clue as to what to say. With a deeper frown on his lips, the youngest Granz lowered his hand.

Meanwhile, the head nurse's own heart seemed to be rampaging inside her chest. In all her years of practice, Nemu had never experienced such an incident like this; granted that it wasn't regularly that she had to look after a comatose patient. Just as her thin hands moved to press a couple of switches and keys on the machine their sounds and blinking stopped.

What was this?

The other occupants were none less perplexed at the sudden occurrence as the nurse was. Eyes sought out each other, asking silent questions that none could give an answer.

Cerulean eyes were instantly fixed at the pale face of the comatose patient who had been the main cause of the disturbance. Grimmjaw subconsciously leaned in nearer to the musician, gulping and afterwards keeping his mouth shut in fear that his incessantly pounding heart wouldn't escape out his throat. He immediately noticed that the ebony-haired teen was no longer breathing hard, rather, the lithe frame of the man remained suspiciously still, two perfect brows relaxing as small steady breaths took place.

"Ulqui-" Grimmjaw stopped dead. Words failing him as he felt the tight grip of the small hand on him loosen considerably.

Lilac and gold eyes instantly flickered onto the respirator's monitor. Both teens letting out a sigh upon seeing that the line graph continued to move up and down.

Nemu gave out a weary sigh herself before feverishly scribbling down notes on her clipboard. The inky-haired nurse then turned to the bespectacled teen in the room, a forced calm on her mien. That had been a close call; she must get them out now before anyone notices or before another incident comes up.

"Szayel, I have allotted sufficient time for you and your companions. It is now time for us to leave…" Nemu spoke in her usual curt voice.

The pink-haired prodigy nodded, Luppi had heard as well and was all set to go. However, a couple of seconds had already passed and yet none of them had moved an inch. The effeminate teen was about to question but somehow the answer came to him without asking. Luppi turned his head and, sure enough, his cousin had not shifted; Grimmjaw still had his back to them, eyes gazing upon the seemingly lifeless figure cocooned within the white sheets.

A frown came onto Luppi's thin lips. "Yo, Grimmy, we have to go. Get your ass away from there and let's-"

"No…" a low voice that was distinctly Grimmjaw's cut across his dark-haired cousin's statement. The one-word statement held no force, but it surprisingly stopped Luppi from continuing.

"What the hell are you going on about?" effeminate Luppi asks, throwing a glare mixed with confusion at the other teen.

Grimmjaw's attention, however, was not at his cousin; and neither was it on Szayel nor Nemu. His wild beating heart from before was slowing to a more lenient pace. It was his breathing now that needed attention. His breath hitched, he dared not make a sound. His mind was confusingly empty, and yet he could not think straight. His blazing cerulean eyes stared. Stared hard as they could. Stared at a dab of shadowed green that peeked from barely opened pale lids.

A wry look overcame Szayel's features. Was Grimmjaw still going to be stubborn? He shook his pink head before speaking out in what he hoped to be a consoling voice, "Grimmjaw we have to leave now. We've overstayed our welcome. I know you're most likely worried but let the guy have his rest, alright? I'm sure Mr. Schiffer badly needs to recuperate…"

Seconds passed but the bespectacled teen did not receive a reply… not one that was directed at him, anyway.

"Ulquiorra…"

Heads turned towards the muscular teen at the words that he'd just let loose, the ice-blue haired teen, however, seemed not to notice the looks that he received.

"Grimm… jaw…" a raspy voice that belonged to neither one of Grimmjaw's initial companions echoed in the pristine room. The volume was barely above a whisper, and the strain in the voice was much too clear.

Lilac, gold and soft green eyes widened, astonishment seeping into the irises; bodies struck immobile by pure shock at the unexpected turn of events.

Ivory eyelids lifted a fraction, revealing more of green-hued irises that looked straight back at twin pools of cerulean eyes. His body felt heavy and he was finding it quite a chore to breathe with the oxygen mask strapped on his face, but still he fought off the lethargy that he knew came from almost a week of hospitalization… in comatose, no less. He could feel his heart thumping softly in the middle of his chest, he could hear the quiet humming of the machines that he knew was connected to his body one way or another, he took in the odorless smell of his hospital room, his whole body felt eerily cold save for his right hand. With much effort, Ulquiorra managed to see a pair of tanned hands enclosing his own, and the warmth he felt on that certain area was immediately explained… yet it did not hold the answer as to why the rest of his body seemed to follow suit in warming up right after he encountered that small realization.

The ebony-haired musician lifted his gaze and met Grimmjaw's eyes once more. He found that the tanned teen still wore a stunned expression, and, with a gush of indescribable emotion, he realized that the taller teen was standing just beside his hospital bed and that his too-blue eyes had withheld their position… they were still boring into him.

"You're… here…" it was with much effort that the still weak teen managed to speak out. Immediately after which, Ulquiorra found the need to take in quick breaths, apparently his lungs had a fervent need for oxygen at the moment.

Hearing those words seemed to snap Grimmjaw out of stupor, for he blinked twice as his eyes regained their focus, though his irises stayed upon Ulquiorra's face. In the white light of the fluorescent lamps on the ceiling, the blue-haired teen had only just comprehended the abundance of cuts that adorned the pale, pale skin of the man that lay before him. Some of them were still reddish, while others had scabs marking them; though thankfully, (save for the one on Ulquiorra's right forearm) no other wound was longer than his thumb. His tanned hands tightened their hold on the smaller and paler hand that belonged to the bedridden patient.

"You goddamn bastard…" Grimmjaw spoke through gritted teeth, "of course I'm here." The ferocity of his tone never reached his eyes, which were still swimming with worry.

"How touching…" a soft voice broke through, despite its light tone, however, the displeasure that lurked beneath the words were clear as day.

The tanned teen froze, feeling his blood turn to ice as the voice registered in his mind. His companions were in no better condition. An indefinable expression settled on the pale musician's features, his deep green eyes simply stared up at Grimmjaw; the only indication of the fear that he was most likely experiencing was the abrupt contraction of his right hand, having gripped the calloused ones that held it.

"Well what do we have here…?" the silk-like voice continued, the faintest sound of footsteps now accompanying it.

"S-Sir, I-I can explain this-"

Nemu's statement was cut short as the tall brunet man raised a hand to halt her. The head nurse obediently bit back her words, trying her earnest to ignore the feeling of goose bumps on her skin as the man sent her a small, mirthless smile.

"I asked you, did I not, to disallow access to this room?" the brunet asked softly.

"Yes sir." Nemu hung her head low, knowing that much trouble will come for her from this single incident.

"And yet, you still chose to bring with you pieces of trash that have no place here…"

"Yes, sir." Admitting her actions didn't cause Nemu much fear as she'd initially thought. True, she knew that what she had done had been against one of the most influential man in the country, but still, the braided woman could not help but have the inkling that she had done the right thing. For one, the hollow feeling that hung around the room for almost a week had already disappeared…

Szayel maintained his ground, feeling quite intimidated by their new companion. The man had such an aura of control and power with him that even the loud-mouthed Luppi seemed to have lost his voice.

"And you…" the brunet's cool voice seemed to echo in the suddenly still room as he addressed the muscular teen who stood beside the hospital bed.

Grimmjaw visible stiffened upon realizing that the man had come to address him at last. He was expecting it, and he'd subconsciously been preparing for the time that he'd finally face Ulquiorra's bastard of a father… but right now. All seemed to abandon him as he could feel the man's eyes boring into his back, communicating without words the order for him to turn around.

He felt the smaller hand between his hold onto him tightly as he released his grasp on it. Ulquiorra's green eyes communicating silently with him, pleading with him, as he'd done only once before, to stop… Stop? How could he stop? Grimmjaw didn't want to. He couldn't just _stop_. Not now…

Reeling himself around, the ice-blue haired teen faced the slightly taller man with a defiant look decidedly set upon his face.

Chocolate brown eyes looked straight at him, took one quick glance of his form as though scrutinizing him and quickly deciding that he was not worth the effort. The smallest curves pulled at the corner of the congressman's lips.

"How nostalgic… seeing you once again…" his tone was quite casual, but Grimmjaw wasn't deceived by any of it; he could practically feel the man's hate for him frizzling the air in between them. The cerulean-eyed teen was not at all surprised to hear that Ulquiorra's father remembered him, it probably wasn't everyday after all, Grimmjaw told himself, that the man ordered his chauffer to run over some poor kid.

"What are you doing here?!" Sadly though, Grimmjaw's voice wasn't cooperating with him at the moment. He could still hear the slightest bit of his fear of the man in his speech… He could almost see the brunet laughing at him.

"I have come to check upon my son's well-being…" The brown-eyed man replied casually, but Grimmjaw could hear the man's mocking tone directed at him. "You on the other hand…" Two perfect brows raised a fraction as chocolate eyes happened to find the declared comatose patient conscious. The man pursed his lips, forming his usual charming and deceiving smile. "Miss Kurotsuchi…" he called to the head nurse.

"Yes sir?" Nemu's reply was abrupt, her soft green eyes deceiving the resolve in her voice.

"I find that you have failed to inform me that my son has awakened…" his chocolate eyes left Ulquiorra and turned to the white-clad woman.

"A-Actually sir, he had just regained consciousness five minutes ago." The head nurse replied, standing in perfect posture as the congressman's eyes landed on her.

"I see…" Brown irises hovered for a moment on Szayel and Luppi but the man made no remark on them, seeming to decide with himself that it was unnecessary.

Ulquiorra pressed his lips together, willing with all his might to calm his nerves. Of all the people to come and find them at this moment, his father had to be the one to arrive. His right hand grasped the white linen sheets tightly; that being his only outlet for the moment. He could feel the numbing cold once again and yet he did not dare to speak. Impassivity escaped him, and he knew that his apprehension was showing.

"Is this what you choose, Ulquiorra?"

The still bedridden musician felt a jolt of surprise at being addressed so suddenly. His cool green eyes, which had been gazing at his right hand, shifted up and met with poisonous chocolate orbs. Choose? What did his father mean? His father was not stupid; he was, in fact, leagues away from such a term. Ulquiorra knew that well, and he also knew what happened when his father faces disobedience from anyone. The mirthless smile on his father's lips told him that one wrong move and he'd make the same mistake from before…

"Mr. Schiffer, please don't-" the green-eyed nurse beseeched as the patient in the cream-hued hospital gown moved to sit up on his own. She was however, frozen in her tracks as she received a cold look from the musician.

"I am fit enough…" Ulquiorra muttered as he moved to remove the oxygen mask from his face using his only right hand, owing to the immobility of his left, being injected with an I.V. and all.

Grimmjaw whirled around upon hearing the short exchange, cerulean orbs wide with abrupt surprise. "Ulquiorra what are you doing?!" Despite his outburst, the muscular teen found himself assisting the smaller male into sitting up.

"Relax, Grimmjaw," the ebony-haired teen replied as he finally managed to detach the mask from over his mouth, his sitting position being of much help. His cool green eyes met with blue irises and a most welcome feeling of warmth coursed through his being, "You can't expect me to let you go through this alone…"

The taller teen bit back his cry of outrage at the other, seeing for himself that Ulquiorra was damn well serious. "You don't have to, you know… You just got out of coma and everything…" Grimmjaw mumbled half-heartedly under the musician's gaze.

"Trust me, I'm fine," was the ebony-haired teen's simple reply; eyes trained on Grimmjaw alone.

Szayel had the strangest feeling that he was very much intruding on something personal. It was rather like he and Luppi were just bystanders in some damned soap opera with the protagonists and antagonists just about to have the highlight of the show. Tension filled up the air and gave him the most unwelcome feeling.

Luppi clenched his fists and bit on his lips to stop himself from saying anything at all. He couldn't do anything even if he tried… One thing was for sure though, and that was the fact that he'd never seen Grimmjaw get this… sentimental? It wasn't quite the perfect description but it was the closest that he could ever get to define the abundance of raw emotion that he found on his cousin… Lilac eyes studied the bulky figure closely. Luppi wasn't a fool, he could easily tell by seeing that Grimmjaw and the young Schiffer had a deep bond shared between them… How that happened, he had no clue. But from what he was seeing right now, it seemed that it was very unlikely for the two to separate now… or even perhaps, forever.

"Well, Ulquiorra?" the disturbingly cool voice of the congressman filled the room again.

"What will you do about it?" the musician countered equally.

"Are you testing my will?" a brown brow arched up.

"He's not!" Grimmjaw quickly interjected, throwing an arm in front of Ulquiorra, as though shielding him; at the same time pointing his thumb to his chest. "I am."

"Grimm–"

"Who do you think you are?!" Anger burst aflame in cerulean eyes once more. "Get a goddamned hobby and stop destroying his life, you over-controlling bastard!"

"Destroying his life?" the brown-haired man scoffed, showing off an ingenious smile. "How dare you berate me on such a matter when _you_ yourself have not done anything but cause my son misery? It was _I_ who gave him everything! _I_ brought him up with nothing but the finest! A first class education! I gave him a well-secured future! All the unsurpassed amount of recognition that he'd gained is because of me! And you! An usurping brainless brat that suddenly comes along and threatens to destroy the flawless plan that I've made for his future–!"

"You don't have any fucking right to decide his future for him!" Grimmjaw was seething.

The man's calm façade was no more. His eyebrows were furrowed and a wide frown had settled on his lips. "I'm his father! I have every right to do so, while you're just–!"

"He's just what?"

The two male's bantering instantaneously halted at the seemingly forgotten patient's quiet speaking.

A suppressed cold fury shimmered in twin pools of green irises as they looked over at the imposing figure of his father.

"Trash." The brunet replied without second thoughts.

Dark ebony brows creased and pale lips became a thin line.

"Why you conniving son of a–!" The cerulean-eyed teen was reeling in despise of the tall brunet.

"And yet…" Ulquiorra interrupted the cerulean-eyed teen smoothly, for once not meeting Grimmjaw's eyes; and instead, he focused on keeping the gaze of his father. "The 'trash' that you have vehemently labeled was the only one… I cannot deny that you have indeed given me more than enough to suppress any man's materialistic desires… But the fact remains, father, that there had been times wherein I felt restriction due to your overindulgence of molding my future for me… Whereas Grimmjaw…" the mentioned teen felt an odd sense of warmth, hearing the speaker mention his name with fondness that the rest of the words lacked. "He was the only one who gave me the only thing that I had ever desired…"

The musician didn't elaborate and left an eerie silence upon the room once he'd stopped speaking.

A rarely seen look fell upon the congressman's chiseled features. The man looked as though he'd just been bitch-slapped or something. It must've been the first time that he'd been spoken against; by his only offspring no less.

"How ungrateful you've become…" the chocolate-eyed man murmured in an attempt to recollect his poise.

"Ungrateful my ass! All his life you've forced him to do as you damn well pleased!" it probably didn't need mentioning but the muscular teen was beyond livid. Ulquiorra had just spoken in his defense, and had most likely placed much more than his life's worth on the line for it, and still, all the guy's jackass of a father did was put more blame on the musician. "Just shut your trap, you old geezer and let him live for once!"

"So you think _you_ could sustain him for the rest of his life?" Eyes narrowed as the finality of his decision seemed to lie on what the reply would be.

…

Was that crackpot implying what he _thought_ he was implying? Grimmjaw's retort of 'yes' died in his throat as his mind processed the underlying meaning of the congressman's words. _For the rest of his life_ he said…

Cerulean irises caught twin pools of green and the blue-haired teen felt his mouth run dry. Ulquiorra was scared. He could see it; he could feel it… and he wanted to actually _do_ something about it. But what could he do? He couldn't – no, _wouldn't_ let Ulquiorra go back to the life he'd lived before…

The tanned teen looked at the ground, his mind swimming with countless questions. He felt numerous eyes upon him, staring so intently at him as if he had all the answers in the world. But he didn't. He had no idea of what to do. If he understood the man's words correctly, it most likely meant that the moment he said 'yes', Ulquiorra would be disowned of everything. That and it definitely implied that _he_ himself was to take care of Ulquiorra's living from then on. And he wasn't an idiot to even think of saying 'no'. He wasn't even sure if Ulquiorra's father was serious about it but the fact remained that nothing would progress if he didn't give a goddamned answer.

"I'll find a way." Grimmjow whispered, slowly lifting his face to meet inquiring green eyes, he then turned around to see Ulquiorra properly. "I can't guarantee any – but I can't just leave you in that bastard's hands… But if you prefer a different–"

"Hah." The cinnamon-haired man scoffed, appearing to have found confidence in Grimmjaw's obvious lack of such. "And you expect me to trust you when you can't even give me assurance-"

"He won't by doing it by himself." Ulquiorra's quiet voice lingered in the air.

And silence descended.

A second passed.

_You didn't have to, you idiot…_

Two seconds went by.

_Of course I had to… I needed to… I need… you._

Three seconds ticked away.

It felt as if a small bud of warmth within his chest had just bloomed into a full-fledged flower, the surge of inexplicable heat flowing with his blood and filling up his body.

Four seconds were gone in a blink.

_BAM._

The hard slam of the door broke the silence. The soft exhales of the three people behind him told Grimmjaw that the congressman had gone.

Nemu's straight posture relaxed as she leaned back against the wall, one hand clutching her chest as she inhaled deeply to calm herself.

Luppi was the only one who didn't move, his lilac eyes following the figures of his cousin and of the famous musician.

Szayel's eyes immediately turned towards Grimmjow who continued to stand defiantly beside the famous musician's hospital bed. He saw the wordless exchange that happened between the two. He wasn't blind not to see the bountiful emotions that wrapped around them… only such a thing could've kept his senior and the patient so strong-willed even in the midst of the great problem that had just passed. He took off his glasses and wiped his tired eyes. 'I've already lost you, haven't I…?'

A loud clank of metal was Ulquiorra's only warning before the right side metal railing of his hospital bed was detached, falling unceremoniously and creating the first noise. And without so much as an invite, Grimmjaw plunked down on a free space on the bed a feet or so from the bedridden patient, facing a quite startled Ulquiorra.

"Grimm-jaw… Wh-What are you–?" the pale musician found it quite difficult to question, given the fact that Grimmjaw was now almost lazily pushing him back into a lying position on the white linen sheets.

"Shut yer trap…" came the command from the muscular teen as he finally managed to get the ebony-haired teen to lie down, he then picked up the previously removed gas mask and made to put it back on Ulquiorra when the said teen suddenly grasped his wrist, preventing him from moving.

"What are you doing?" the hospitalized teen finally managed to ask.

Cool green eyes held cerulean irises, and it was with a start that Ulquiorra found that the too-blue eyes' color were somewhat subdued; much too different from the usual fire that stirred in them.

"You're still weak; rest." was Grimmjaw's dismissive reply. And as he strapped back the mask onto the pale face, Ulquiorra finally let down his guard, finding tranquility as tanned hands brushed against his skin and sometimes even caressed his ebony hair.

"Sleep." The ice-blue haired teen restated.

The green-eyed musician wanted to protest but found that he could not. Indeed, his body felt heavy, and it was getting heavier by each passing second. Not too soon, he felt his eyelids begin to droop but Ulquiorra still fought to maintain consciousness. A warm hand covered his; the soft rubbing motions of a calloused thumb on the back of his pale hand surmounting his will to stay awake.

"Stay…" Ulquiorra breathed before he finally succumbed to the call of sleep.

The calloused hand held the smaller hand tighter. The temporary adrenaline rush had subsided, leaving Grimmjaw with much fatigue to cope up with. After all, he, too, had just come out of a hospital. Nonetheless, the muscular teen replied with much sincerity.

"…Forever if you want…"

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**A/N:** It's just the epilogue next and then, bye-bye!! Sorry if this was a disappointment to anyone but that's really all there is that I could think of for this... At least Ulqui finally stood up to his meanie daddy right..?


	14. Für Immer

**Für Immer**

The marble white tombstone stood there, tall and proud without a blemish on it's straight-edged surface, looking as if it was brand-new. It has been how many years now? Fifteen? Sixteen? Seventeen? The lone figure that stood before it had already lost count. It has been so long since he last visited this place…

His eyes traveled over the Old English text that had been engraved on the front. Reading the name brought a tinge of nostalgia to him, but it was quickly countered when his eyes found the dates of birth and death. Such a short life…

He closed his eyes and felt the warm summer breeze blow by; caressing his skin, toying with his hair and ruffling his clothing. It brought with it the smell of sweet flowers, lush foliage, and fresh river water. He could hear the distant chirping of birds, among the trees or flying high above the sky. The tepid heat from the sun bathed him in soothing warmth, warmth that filled his very being.

The crunching of grass underfoot was heard from behind but the figure did not bother to look, he knew very well who it was without even trying. He was surprised, however, when he felt a soft article of clothing drape over his shoulders.

"So this is where you've been hiding…" a gruff voice spoke just beside his left ear. A familiar warmth forming on his back and left shoulder as the newcomer stood with minimal proximity from him.

"I wasn't hiding," his own quiet voice justified. "I was just…" He felt gel-ed up strands of hair brushing his left cheek and opened his eyes by a fraction to meet the intent gaze that he knew was given to him. "…visiting someone."

A wide frown graced his companion's lips for a moment before the too-blue eyes shifted and went to the tombstone that rose before them. Strong arms circled his abdomen and he allowed himself to lean back against the muscled body.

_Argenter__é__ Renard-Schiffer_

"She's…" his companion asks.

"My mother." He replies. "My biological mother…"

"Ah."

They shared one of the many comfortable silences that both of them had learned to understand… even revere.

The lean figure inhaled the scent that distinctively characterized the man who stood behind him.

"Are you okay now?" another query came.

A loose smile fell on pale lips as surprisingly soft hands cupped the tanned ones around his waist. "I am."

Their hands interlaced as though it was the most normal thing to do… and perhaps it really was. And in a most fluent way, lips met in a chaste kiss. It was feather light, and had no tongue involved; a simple gesture of inexplicable affection that surely ran deep. They parted after a few moments and nothing more was exchanged until…

Soft padding footsteps and crunching grass reached their ears, both teens turning around in alarm. They had not expected anyone else to join them. Their surprise only doubled when they recognized the man now walking towards them.

The cinnamon-brown hair and chocolate eyes were impossible to misjudge. The tall man wore a crisp shirt and slacks, a black fedora hat was on his head and in his hands was a white bouquet of golden-yellow flowers. He looked at them once; his stare lasted for a full minute before he continued as if they weren't there.

A brow was raised in question but no iteration was given.

The congressman kneeled in front of the tomb and laid the bouquet of marigolds at its foot. A gloved hand took off the hat and he bowed his head for a while. He stood up, dusted his pants and faced the two teens. "Ulquiorra. Grimmjaw." His cool voice was the same as ever; confident yet mysterious. He replaced his hat and walked way.

Pairs of green and cerulean blue eyes watched as the authority figure treaded farther and farther away.

The sun shone. The wind blew. And life went on.

"Come on…" Grimmjaw invited, releasing his hold on the smaller teen. "They're waiting for us…"

The pale teen allowed his confusion to show. _They_…?

A smirk was readily plastered on Grimmjaw's face. "I told ya you were goin' to meet my friends…"

A shy smile was Ulquiorra's main reply.

"Ah, come 'ere…" a muscled arm latched around jacket-covered shoulders and the tall teen proceeded to lead the other away.

"Where are we going…?"

"The beach."

"And what are we going to do there?"

"Don't play dumb, what else do you expect to do at a damned beach? We swim, of course!"

"Swim…?"

"Yeah…."

"…"

"…"

"Grimm?"

"Hn?"

"I can't swim…"

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**A/N:** Welcome to the end!! Yes, _Mein __Gedächtnis_ has finally ended, quite a simple ending, no? But I'm damn well happy with it…

Thanks to everyone who've stuck by this from the very beginning and lots of love to all of ya!!

I'm working on the next chapters of Catwalk, so I hope to see you guys there!

Cheers,

pretense.


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